Sheikh Hasina’s planned speech revives fresh India-Bangladesh row

The exiled former prime minister is scheduled to give a virtual address at a foreign correspondents’ club event in Delhi on Wednesday

The remarks were Bangladesh’s first official response to Hasina’s planned appearance at Wednesday’s event hosted by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of South Asia (FCCSA) in Delhi, marking the second anniversary of the student-led uprising that toppled her government.

“We are moving forward with India with a forward-looking approach. We don’t want that progress to be affected,” Bangladesh’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam told reporters late on Monday. “India has to be clear about its stance.”

The FCCSA said Hasina, 78, would address the Delhi event by video link alongside her son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, and other speakers. The club did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Bangladesh government’s concerns.

Islam said Bangladesh had repeatedly conveyed its concerns to India over Hasina and other Awami League leaders making political statements from Indian soil.