The Narendra Modi government is expected to appoint senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Dinesh Trivedi as India’s next High Commissioner to Bangladesh, according to media reports. However, formal agreement from the government in Dhaka, a standard diplomatic procedure, is yet to be sought.
Trivedi is expected to replace Pranay Verma, a career Indian Foreign Service officer, who is set to move to Brussels as India’s ambassador to the European Union, according to reports.
Who is Dinesh Trivedi?
Trivedi, born on June 4, 1950, served as Union minister for railways and minister of state for health and family welfare in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Cabinet. He joined the Congress in the Eighties and switched to Janata Dal in 1990.
In 1998, he joined the Trinamool Congress and represented the Barrackpore constituency in the Lok Sabha between 2009 and 2019. He resigned from the party in February 2021 and joined the BJP in March 2021.
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Rare non-IFS appointment
It is seen as a rare move to appoint non-career diplomats to foreign postings, as India’s envoys are mostly drawn from the Indian Foreign Service. However, there have been exceptions, including retired military officers and public figures. In 2019, former Army Chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag was appointed as High Commissioner to Seychelles.
Appointment amid bilateral tensions
The posting comes at a time when India-Bangladesh ties are under strain. Relations were tested following former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s departure from Dhaka to Delhi in August 2024 after a civil uprising, and were further complicated by attacks on minority communities in the months that followed.
The bilateral tensions extended to cricket when the BCCI directed Kolkata Knight Riders to release Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman from the IPL 2026 squad. In response, Bangladesh withdrew from playing the T20 World Cup citing security concerns in India. Currently, both governments continue to hold diplomatic exchanges aimed at restoring engagement.
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