Dhaka, December 31 – India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S.Jaishankar left Dhaka following a whirlwind 4-hrour visit on Wednesday.  Bangladesh and India would look forward to script a new chapter in bilateral ties, in shared interests driven by pragmatism and mutual interdependence, as indeed briefly discussed with the acting Chair of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Tarique Rahman on Wednesday afternoon.

Several foreign dignitaries, including India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, have met Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Acting Chairperson Tarique Rahman in Dhaka to convey condolences following the death of his mother, former prime minister Khaleda Zia.

According to a statement posted on the BNP’s official Facebook page, Jaishankar handed over a condolence message from the Indian government during the meeting at the Parliament complex on Wednesday.

Jaishankar arrived in Dhaka at around 11:30am on Wednesday on a special flight of the Indian Air Force. He was received at Bashar Air Base by M Farhad Hossain, a secretary at Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A Pakistani delegation has also travelled to Dhaka to attend the funeral prayers. Pakistan’s National Assembly Speaker, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, met Tarique separately to convey his country’s condolences, the BNP said.

Foreign ministers from Nepal and Bhutan also handed over condolence messages to Tarique.

According to the BNP’s Media Cell, Nepal’s Foreign Minister Bala Nanda Sharma and his Bhutanese counterpart DN Dhungyel met the BNP acting chairperson separately at the Parliament complex on Wednesday afternoon to convey their governments’ condolences.

Those present during the meetings included Tarique’s daughter, Zaima Rahman, BNP Standing Committee members Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and Salahuddin Ahmed, and Joint Secretary General Humayun Kabir, the party said.

Manik Mia Avenue was packed to the brim for Khaleda’s funeral, which was held with full state honours.

Several other foreign dignitaries were also in attendance, including ministers from the Maldives and Sri Lanka, along with senior representatives from Malaysia, Qatar and other countries. Heads of diplomatic missions from China, the United Kingdom, the United States and other nations are also due to be present.

Khaleda, Bangladesh’s first female prime minister, died early on Tuesday after spending about 40 days in hospital in Dhaka. She served as prime minister on three occasions and led the BNP for more than four decades, rising to prominence during the anti-autocracy movement of the 1990s as an “uncompromising leader”.

Her death has prompted three days of state mourning, with Wednesday declared a public holiday.

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