PM's India tour likely May 24-25

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to pay a two-day visit to West Bengal on May 24-25 to formally inaugurate the Bangladesh Bhaban at Visva-Bharati in Santiniketan and receive an honorary doctorate from Kazi Nazrul University in Asansol.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to attend both the programmes, said diplomatic sources in Dhaka and New Delhi.

Sources at the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in Dhaka yesterday told The Daily Star that it was almost confirmed that the premier would inaugurate the Bangladesh Bhaban along with her Indian counterpart on May 25.

Kazi Nazrul University, a public university in West Bengal's Asansol, has decided to confer an honorary doctorate on Hasina. It may take place on May 24 and the Indian prime minister, who is the chancellor of the university, might confer the honorary degree on Hasina.

“We are expecting that it will be a two-day visit and the prime minister will attend both the programmes,” said a PMO source, adding that details of the visit would be finalised soon.

“She [Hasina] is coming to West Bengal and our prime minister may be there,” said an official at the Ministry of External Affairs of India when reached by phone. The official, however, could not give the details of the programme schedule since those are yet to be fine-tuned.

The Times of India yesterday reported that Hasina will be in India to open the Bangladesh Bhavan at Visva-Bharati, and Modi is expected to travel to Santiniketan to meet Hasina on May 25. 

The Bangladesh Bhavan, which includes a museum showcasing Rabindranath Tagore's association with Bangladesh, the Liberation War of Bangladesh and Indo-Bangla relations, has been built with funding from the Bangladesh government.

Quoting the official dealing with the visit of Hasina, our New Delhi correspondent reports that Hasina will go to Santiniketan on May 25 for the inauguration of The Bangladesh Bhavan.

Asked about the possibility of a meeting between Hasina and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during the former's stay in Kolkata, the official said, “The day of the visit was confirmed by both sides only on Wednesday and details of her itinerary will now fall into place.”

Prior to Hasina's visit to Santiniketan, Modi will pay a two-day visit to Nepal on May 10 and 11, a little more than a month after Nepalese Prime Minister KP Oli had visited India for his first overseas foray since assuming office in February.