India appoints Dinesh Trivedi as High Commissioner to Bangladesh

India's Ministry of External Affairs announced on Monday the appointment of Dinesh Trivedi, a former Union minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader, as the country's next High Commissioner to Bangladesh. Trivedi, 75, is expected to assume the role in Dhaka shortly, replacing career diplomat Pranay Verma, who has been named ambassador to the European Union and Belgium.

Trivedi brings a lengthy political career to the diplomatic post. He served as railway minister from 2011 to 2012 and minister of state for health and family welfare from 2009 to 2011 during the Manmohan Singh government. Initially with the Trinamool Congress, he represented Barrackpore in the Lok Sabha from 2009 to 2019 and later held a Rajya Sabha seat from Gujarat before joining the BJP in 2021. The selection of a political figure rather than a career diplomat marks a departure from tradition, similar to recent appointments of senior officials to other envoyships.

The move comes amid efforts to bolster bilateral ties between India and Bangladesh, neighbors sharing a 4,096-kilometer border and deep economic links. Relations strained after Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh's prime minister for 16 years, fled to India in...