Issues like Rohingya and political environment in the country ahead of the next general election are likely to dominate the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi today (Friday).
Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to leave for Indian state of West Bengal this morning on a two-day visit.
She will inaugurate the Bangladesh Bhavan on the Viswa Bharati University campus in Shantiniketan in the presence of Narendra Modi, who is the chancellor of the university.
Later, Sheikh Hasina will attend the convocation ceremony of Viswa Bharati. The two leaders will hold talks in the afternoon, following lunch to be hosted by Modi. Thereafter, Hasina will fly to Kolkata and Modi to Delhi.
The bilateral meeting between the two PMs assumes significance with the general elections in Bangladesh six months away.
The Bangladesh government had been dismayed at the initial Indian reaction to the violent displacement of the Rohingyas by Myanmar security forces. As thousands of refugees poured across the Bangladesh border every day, Dhaka made known its distress at the Indian stance that seemed to tilt in favour of Myanmar, Indian media reports said.
New Delhi later made amends by undertaking 'Operation Insaniyat' to supply relief materials to the Rohingya refugees as well as extending full support to Bangladesh's efforts to resolve the issue.
"The informal summit is taking place just days after Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj's visit to Myanmar, where she met the country's top leadership. The two sides discussed the Rohingya refugee crisis, and India offered to provide prefabricated houses for displaced persons in Rakhine state," said a report published by the First Post.
In her discussions, Swaraj underlined the need for "safe, speedy and sustained return of displaced persons to Rakhine state", according to an External Affairs Ministry statement.
Modi had assured Bangladesh during Hasina's previous visit that he was making efforts towards a satisfactory solution to the problem. As elections in Bangladesh draw closer, the issue is likely to gain urgency for the government in Dhaka as well.
Relations between India and Bangladesh have widened and deepened during the past decade of the Sheikh Hasina government. Both India and Bangladesh are due to hold elections within the next 12 months, and the informal meeting provides the opportunity for a high-level review of bilateral relations, the report added.
During her stay in Kolkata, Hasina will attend an iftar party, to be organised by the Bangladesh high commissioner. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has been invited to the programme.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh government-funded Bhavan on Viswa Bharati University campus will be inaugurated in the presence of Sheikh Hasina and Modi. It will be Modi's first visit to the university. The Bangladesh Bhavan will house a library and a Liberation War museum.
Besides, at the Kazi Nazrul University near Churulia, Sheikh Hasina will be conferred an honorary DLit degree by West Bengal Governor and university chancellor Keshari Nath Tripathi tomorrow (Saturday). Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will be the chief guest at the convocation.
Meanwhile, Indian daily the Hindustan Times said while no meeting was planned between Mamata and the two PMs, they are ready to counter any question regarding the state administration's decision to shelter members of the persecuted community.
The West Bengal government is readying its defence for a controversial decision to shelter dozens of Rohingya families in various parts of the state ahead of a meeting between Narendra Modi and Sheikh Hasina today.
Senior state officials said while no meeting was planned between the three, they want to take no chances.
The issue of Rohingya resettlement is one of the many subjects on which Mamata differs sharply with the BJP-led central government. While the Modi government wants to deport all Rohingya refugees, who are considered as the most persecuted ethnic minority in the world, the Bengal chief minister publicly expressed her empathy for them last year.
"Nobody except the chief minister will go on record on this issue. Though the issue is not on the agenda, we will be prepared even if the question is raised informally," he added.
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