50 Bangladeshi Judges’ Training In India Axed As Relations With New Delhi Turn Sour

Bangladesh’s interim government has cancelled scheduled training of 50 lower judiciary judges in India. The scheduled training from February 10 at India’s National Judicial Academy and State Judicial Academy in Madhya Pradesh was cancelled after a notification issued on Sunday. The Indian government was going to bear all the expenses of the programme.

A spokesperson for Bangladesh’s Law Ministry confirmed the cancellation but did not comment further on the decision.

Cancellation Due To Supreme Court Directive

The Daily Star reports that the cancellation was due to directives from Bangladesh’s Supreme Court. The judges chosen for the program were district and sessions judges, additional district and sessions judges, joint district judges, senior assistant judges, and assistant judges.

The move comes at a time when India and Bangladesh are making efforts to maintain cooperation on humanitarian grounds. Recently, both nations agreed to repatriate 95 Indian and 90 Bangladeshi fishermen on January 5, 2025. This repatriation, carried out by their respective coast guards, is seen as a goodwill gesture aimed at easing tensions and fostering ties between the two countries.

Rising Diplomatic Strain

Relations between India and Bangladesh have been under strain since August 5, 2024, when former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to New Delhi after being ousted by a massive student-led protest. The interim government assumed power on August 8, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.

This is where the problem of attacks on members of the Hindu community and their places of worship has been complicated by more recent incidents. New Delhi has taken note of the arrests of a number of Hindu monks, including recently in Bangladesh on sedition charges who was refused bail and is currently behind bars.

Despite all these, the two countries have sought to bridge the gap between them through cooperative activities, such as the repatriation of fishermen set for next week. However, the cancellation of the judicial training program illustrates the fragile nature of the relationship at present.

India and Bangladesh have traditionally been very close, but the changing political and social landscape in Bangladesh has created problems.

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