What Veena Sikri said on Tarique Rahman's India visit issue

Former Indian diplomat Veena Sikri has expressed surprise over attempts to link Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's visit to India with the demand for the extradition of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The former Indian Foreign Service officer said such statements are absolutely unacceptable in the current context.

In an interview on Tuesday, Veena Sikri said both countries are in talks to finalise the dates for Tarique Rahman's visit at the head of government level. She said, "The Bangladesh government is trying to link the Prime Minister's visit with the extradition request for Sheikh Hasina, which is very surprising." According to her, the press note or Facebook post issued by the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs is extremely "rude" and "arrogant," and such a situation is completely unacceptable.

Noting that discussions between the two governments are ongoing, the former diplomat said, "Discussions and preparations regarding the visit's dates are also continuing." She pointed out that the Bangladesh government has not issued any statement suggesting that Tarique Rahman would not visit India. In Veena Sikri's view, such remarks reflect a "lack of seriousness" on the part of the Bangladesh government regarding the importance of the visit to India.

She said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited Tarique Rahman twice since he took oath. The first invitation came on February 17, after he took oath, inviting him for a bilateral visit with his family at his convenience." Sikri said there was an understanding that India would be the destination of Tarique Rahman's first foreign visit. However, no response was given to that invitation even after six months, she claimed. A second invitation was extended a few weeks ago for Tarique Rahman to attend the BRICS summit as the BIMSTEC chair, but no response was given to that either.

Veena Sikri said, "The window of opportunity for Tarique Rahman's India visit is very limited." She said linking the visit to Sheikh Hasina's extradition is "unnecessary, undiplomatic" and inconsistent with the purpose of extradition. She said, "Everyone knows, and the Bangladesh government knows better than others, that extradition is a legal process and can take years to conclude, as seen in cases involving requests from London and other places."

Veena Sikri questioned, "So, does Tarique Rahman not want to visit India for the next two to three years?" She said, "No response was given even when preparations for a bilateral visit were underway and the window for the visit was narrowing." Instead, such "games" have begun, she remarked.