Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Chief Seeks Clarification of High Commissioner Candidate Dinesh Trivedi’s Statements

Shafiqur Rahman, Ameer (President) Jamaat-e-Islami. File. | Photo credit: Reuters

New Delhi

Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi’s remarks suggesting that India and Bangladesh should “unite” in their efforts were “definitely condemnable”, Bangladesh’s Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) Ameer Shafiqur Rahman said on Saturday.

In a statement posted on social media, Mr. Rahman said that both India and Bangladesh are independent countries and that the Tarique Rahman government should ask Mr. Trivedi for an explanation.

“Yesterday, after the arrival of the new Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Mr. Dinesh Trivedi, one of his remarks caught our attention. We believe that our government should seek an explanation from him as to what he meant by the phrase ‘India and Bangladesh become one’,” Mr. Rahman said while asserting Bangladesh’s independent identity.

Mr. Trivedi, who entered Bangladesh through the Benapole-Petrapole land crossing, about 112 km from Kolkata, told reporters that he did not feel like a foreigner after entering Bangladesh. “We have a population of 140 million and Bangladesh has 20 million people. Whatever we do, we have to do it together. We cannot be powerful in isolation,” Mr Trivedi said.

Reacting to Mr Trivedi’s remarks, Mr Rahman said: “The issue needs to be clarified. Just as India is an independent country, Bangladesh is also an independent country. If his statement is not clarified, it will certainly create confusion among the public.”

Mr. Trivedi is the first political appointee to the post of Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh since the country gained independence in 1971. Apart from the first High Commissioner, Subimal Dutt, who was called into service after his retirement in 1962, all other Indian High Commissioners in Dhaka have been career diplomats.

The Ministry of External Affairs has yet to comment on JeI’s remarks: “If he meant something like that in a literal sense, then it is certainly reprehensible,” said Mr Rahman, who heads the 77-strong opposition bloc in the Jatiya Sangsad, Bangladesh’s unicameral legislature.

In the February 2026 elections, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) led by Tariq Rahman won 212 out of 300 seats, while the 11-party alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami won 77 seats. JeI, with 68 seats, emerged as the main opposition party.

Since the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government, the JeI-led Mr Rahman has emerged as an important political player in Dhaka and is often seen interacting with foreign diplomats. On June 9, he met with US Ambassador Brent T. Christensen at the National Parliament building and discussed “regional and international issues”.

He has also met diplomats from several other countries and blocs such as the European Union over the past few months as he seeks to project a “more pragmatic side” to Jamaat-e-Islami, which has long faced accusations of crimes against humanity for supporting Pakistani forces during Bangladesh’s 1971 liberation war.

Last year, Mr Rahman sent shockwaves through Dhaka’s political circles after he claimed that an official from India’s external intelligence wing, the R&AW, had met him after he underwent heart surgery in 2025.

Published – 13 Jun 2026 21:43 IST