New Delhi: India desires a positive, constructive and forward-looking engagement with Bangladesh, the Ministry of External Affairs said at its biweekly media briefing in New Delhi on Friday. The ministry’s spokesman, Randhir Jaiswal, said meetings had been held under established bilateral mechanisms on issues such as railways and water resources.
India remains ready to discuss all bilateral matters with Dhaka, including at the technical level, Jaiswal added.
When a reporter asked Jaiswal about a post by Shashi Tharoor on X without naming him, Jaiswal said visa-related matters fall within the sovereign domain of the respective country. His reply was general. He did not address Tharoor’s figures, the Union home ministry’s role or the Bharat Summit, and did not confirm or dispute the claims.
On a post on X, Congress MP Tharoor had said that 115 of the 315 speakers cleared by the MEA for the Bharat Summit were refused entry to India or had their visas cancelled, apparently on the instructions of the Union home ministry. He said it was unclear under what provision of law the step had been taken, and that it could not be reversed because the conference was ending the next day. He accused the government of insecurity and of stifling voices it feared would be critical.
Separately, the MEA said the welfare of seafarers remains important to India, as it gave an update on an Indian seafarer, Akshay Harish. The Indian mission in Tehran and the consulate in Bandar Abbas have reached out to him after he contacted the consulate on November 9.
Harish had joined a merchant vessel in Japan in 2025, and the captain later told him in Iran that his passport and continuous discharge certificate (CDC) documents had been lost. He is receiving support from his company, an emergency certificate has been issued, and he is ready to travel back to India.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) meeting was held in Paris, where India participated to strengthen global cooperation and networks to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing and related financial crimes, the MEA said.