New Delhi

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar, during his meeting with Bangladesh's Foreign Affairs Advisor Touhid Hossain in Muscat earlier this week, conveyed the importance of Bangladesh not normalising terrorism, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) revealed on Friday.

The EAM had held a series of meetings with his counterparts from neighbouring countries, including Bangladesh, on the sidelines of the Indian Ocean Conference in Muscat on February 16.

While Jaishankar mentioned that the conversation with the Foreign Affairs Advisor of the Interim Government in Dhaka was focused on bilateral relations, as well as on BIMSTEC, the Bangladeshi side noted that Hossain emphasised the importance of holding a meeting of the SAARC Standing Committee and urged the Indian government to consider the matter.

"Regarding whether SAARC came up for discussion or not... Yes, the matter was raised by the Bangladeshi side when the EAM met with Bangladesh's Foreign Advisor in Muscat. It was acknowledged that everyone in South Asia is aware of which country and what activities are responsible for stymying SAARC. The EAM conveyed that it is important for Bangladesh not to normalise terrorism," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters in New Delhi during a media briefing.

EAM Jaishankar and Hossain last met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York in September, marking the first high-level engagement between India and Bangladesh's interim government after the ousting of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government in August 2024.

Bangladeshi media had reported that during their meeting, which lasted less than half an hour, EAM Jaishankar and Hossain emphasised the importance of addressing the challenges in their bilateral relations and also discussed "the topic of organising" a meeting between Chief Advisor Professor Muhammad Yunus and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok later this year.

The 6th Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Summit is scheduled to be held in Bangkok, Thailand, from April 2-4 later this year, where Bangladesh will assume the chairmanship of BIMSTEC.

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While India continues to advocate for the normalisation of relations between the two neighbouring countries, the current regime in Dhaka has faced substantial criticism for making unfounded accusations and targeting minorities, particularly the Hindu community in Bangladesh, since the dramatic fall of Hasina's Awami League government last year.

In December, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri visited Dhaka, conveying New Delhi's concerns, especially regarding the safety and welfare of minorities in Bangladesh, to the top leadership of the interim government.