Why Tarique Rahman's Attendance At BRICS Summit Is Now A Key Focus

With India hosting 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12-13, 2026, under its fourth presidency of the bloc, the focus this time will also be on the outreach sessions that are organised.

And Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has been invited to the summit but his visit has not been confirmed yet by the Bangladesh side, leading to speculation on what's holding up a decision on his participation in the summit.

When asked whether the invitation to visit Delhi had been discussed when the Indian High Commissioner met Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman on Monday, Khalilur Rahman said, "We have not yet taken any decision on this."

When asked about Rahman's visit to India, Bangladesh's Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman said, "First of all, I am not a fortune-teller. Secondly, the prime minister was not invited to BRICS. He was invited as the chair of BIMSTEC. You should try to understand that distinction."

But he added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had previously sent a letter to Bangladesh's Prime Minister, which was handed over on the day the new government was formed. "There is an invitation," he said.

Which makes it two invitations to Tarique Rahman. And yet there is no clarity on the proposed visit, which will definitely see bilateral talks as well alongside the agenda of the summit.

"A formal invitation to the Bangladesh PM to visit India was extended when he assumed office in February 2026. As far as the BRICS Summit is concerned, India has separately extended an invitation to him in his capacity as the current chair of BIMSTEC to attend the outreach session of the summit, which will be held in New Delhi. The invitation has been extended as per the standard practice being followed in BRICS for the outreach sessions. Other heads of regional groups have also been invited in a similar manner," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had told reporters earlier.

The official theme for India's chairship is "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability".

There are two possible reasons that are holding back Tarique Rahman from confirming his participation despite the two invites. The first is domestic pressure from anti-India groups which could use the trip to destabilise and attack his government domestically. The main opposition party in Bangladesh, the hardline Jamaat-E-Islami Bangladesh, has indicated it wants good relations with India. Sources say Tarique Rahman is carefully considering the message and the possibility of outcomes before officially confirming that he will travel to India next month.

The second reason could be the optics of which invite to accept. Sources within Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry say Bangladesh is more keen on engaging with India on a bilateral platform rather than a multilateral platform like BRICS. India-Bangladesh ties have to be seen through the prism of existing bilateral issues, sources have told NDTV.

Eyebrows were raised in New Delhi when Rahman chose Malaysia and China as the first countries to visit on his first official trip abroad as Prime Minister. Bangladesh shares a 4,096-kilometre-long (2,545 mi) international boundary with India passing along the states of West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram. The announcements made in the joint statement after the trip are also causes of concern for India especially the announcements on the Teesta Plan, the Mongla Port added to India's worries. It was presumed that the reset underway in India-Bangladesh relations would, however, be on track with his visit to India, and that is why there is speculation about the reasons for the delay.

Over the last few days several meetings have taken place to remove any barriers to Tarique Rahman travelling to Delhi. Before, meeting the Prime Minister, Dinesh Trivedi met Foreign Minister Dr. Khalilur Rahman, his deputy Shama Obaed Islam and the Foreign Affairs Advisor to the Prime Minister, Humayun Kabir.   The Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Dinesh Trivedi, described the meeting with the Prime Minister as positive, constructive and forward-looking.

"We had a good discussion. We have issues, and so does Bangladesh. But there is only one people's issue: good relations. There is no issue on which we cannot sit down and find a solution," the high commissioner said after meeting the Bangladesh Prime Minister. Trivedi also met Bangladesh's Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed after meeting Tarique Rahman.

Given the position now, it will be very difficult for Tarique Rahman to explain why he cannot make it to the BRICS summit. While the issue of Sheikh Hasina and the press interaction in Delhi did cause a storm, India was quick to draw a line between views expressed at a private event and official government policy and government to government ties. That creates room for diplomatic manoeuvre on both sides.

And with the Ganga Water Treaty expiring in December, both sides need to arrive at a solution and talks with India cannot be indefinitely postponed as both in the case of the Teesta and the Ganga, India is the upper riparian state.

At the end of the day, India is Bangladesh's biggest neighbour, and one simply cannot change its neighbours or avoid talking to them. And that's exactly how the man who is handling this critical assignment summed it up. Before heading to New Delhi, following the series of meetings, Dinesh Trivedi said, "Whatever is there in our history, it cannot be changed. We cannot change our neighbourhood. I always say, we don't share the border, we share dreams."