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Biman Mukherji

Bangladesh’s request for additional diesel from India has turned a growing power crisis into a potential opening for the two neighbours to repair ties strained in part by the continuous self-exile of ex-prime minister Sheikh Hasina in New Delhi and Dhaka’s repeated requests for her extradition.
India confirmed on Friday that it was examining Dhaka’s request for extra fuel as Bangladesh ordered shops, malls and markets to close by 8pm to conserve power, with hospitals, pharmacies and restaurants exempted.
The request could give Delhi and Dhaka a chance to rebuild trust following Hasina’s ousting in 2024 even as tensions over her stay in India, Bangladesh’s outreach to Pakistan and China-linked projects continue to complicate ties between the two neighbours.
“We have an ongoing arrangement with Bangladesh for supply of diesel. This continues,” Randhir Jaiswal, India’s foreign ministry spokesman, told reporters.
He added that the additional request for diesel “will be examined keeping in mind our own requirement, our refining capacity, as also the availability of diesel here in our country”.
Under an existing 15-year agreement, India supplies Bangladesh with 180,000 tonnes of diesel annually. Bangladesh has been getting diesel from India through the India-Bangladesh Friendship pipeline since 2017.
In March and April, India increased its diesel supply to Bangladesh amid disruptions caused by the Middle East war.
Bangladesh has been hit by a power crunch due to limited gas supplies, with its national grid struggling during peak hours in recent months, according to media reports.
Ties between the two countries nosedived under an interim Dhaka administration headed by Muhammad Yunus following Hasina’s ousting.

In recent months, both sides have taken steps to stabilise ties following the appointment of Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman after his electoral win in the general election in February.
India appointed ex-minister Dinesh Trivedi as Delhi’s ambassador to Dhaka in June while a four-member Indian security delegation visited the Bangladeshi capital earlier in August.
In April, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met his Bangladeshi counterpart Khalilur Rahman in Delhi, the most senior visit by a Dhaka envoy since the 2024 revolution that toppled Hasina.
Top Bangladeshi intelligence and defence officials also visited Delhi in March and July, respectively.
On the travel front, Bangladesh restored all visa categories for Indian visitors in February while India reopened tourist visa applications for Bangladeshi nationals in June.
However, tensions rose again after Hasina angered Dhaka by insisting that the ban on her Awami League party, which she heads as president, should be lifted at a virtual media conference that she held in Delhi on August 5.
The 78-year-old was sentenced to death in November after a Bangladeshi tribunal found her guilty of crimes against humanity.
Meanwhile, India has invited Rahman to attend the Brics summit in Delhi on September 12 and 13. However, Dhaka said on Sunday that Rahman would not visit India until Delhi extradited Hasina.

In his written response to queries by This Week in Asia, M.J. Akbar, a former Indian external affairs minister and veteran journalist, said: “Those searching for disruption will always find a reason, but it must be contained or it will splinter normalcy and sabotage progress.”
India had been concerned about Bangladesh drawing closer to Pakistan on military matters, Akbar said.
According to media reports, Dhaka is considering buying JF-17 Thunder fighter jets, co-developed by China and Pakistan, from Islamabad.
Delhi is also worried about a pact between Dhaka and Beijing under which China will develop an economic zone near the Mongla Port, close to India’s east coast.
Despite the concerns, Delhi was still helping Dhaka to deal with its energy crisis, Akbar said.
According to Akbar, the election of Rahman’s government has raised hopes that both countries would resume their formerly close ties.
“There was legitimate hope that a return of democracy this year would restore good bilateral vibes,” Akbar said, who also referred to Trivedi’s appointment as a positive step.
“It would be unfortunate if such hopes were vitiated,” he added.
Srinivasan Balakrishnan, director at Delhi-based security think tank Indic Researchers Forum, called on India to do more to help Bangladesh tide through its energy crisis.
“New Delhi can and should explore more support, because stable neighbours mean a stronger South Asia,” Balakrishnan said.


Conversely, Bangladesh should deal with the presence of Islamic militant groups in its territory in response to India’s security concerns, he added.
Priyajit Debsarkar, a London-based author, said the India-Bangladesh Friendship pipeline was key to how Delhi could use it to improve the bilateral relations.
By stepping in again during Bangladesh’s energy shortage, India had reinforced its reputation as a reliable partner in the region, he said.
Yashwant Deshmukh, an independent political commentator, said that Bangladesh would ultimately turn to India on energy and other matters despite their differences.
“Eventually, they have to deal with India. If there is an electricity crisis, can Pakistan help Bangladesh?” he said.


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Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s energy crisis opens door for India to mend ties

Auto-rickshaws that run on compressed natural gas queue up to refuel at a filling station in Dhaka on Monday amid an energy crisis in Bangladesh. Photo: EPA

Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Tarique Rahman (centre) attends the launch of a museum in Dhaka for those killed during the 2024 revolution at the former residence of Bangladesh’s ousted leader Sheikh Hasina. Photo: AP

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (right) meets his Bangladeshi counterpart Khalilur Rahman in New Delhi in April. Photo: India’s Ministry of External Affairs/AFP

A station worker refuels an auto-rickshaw that runs on compressed natural gas at a filling station in Dhaka on Monday amid an energy crisis in Bangladesh. Photo: EPA

Brics’ ‘stiffest test’: can India, China rally bloc to resolve Strait of Hormuz crisis?

Vessels transit the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas in southern Iran on Monday. Photo: AFP

India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (right) shakes hands with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi during the Brics foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi on May 14. Photo: Reuters

A composite satellite image shows trail of smoke rising from an oil facility in Jazan province, Saudi Arabia, on July 26. Photo: European Union/Copernicus Sentinel-2/Handout via Reuters

‘Islamic Nato’? Why Pakistan’s new defence pact has India on edge

Pakistani people and students hold flags to celebrate the Pakistan-Saudi Arab-Turkish joint defence pact on Monday. Photo: EPA

Pakistan Air Force JF-17 fighter jets perform at a rehearsal in Islamabad in March 2024. Bangladesh has been in talks to buy these jets as part of its military modernisation plans. Photo: AFP

Bangladesh’s ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Photo: Kyodo

President of the Maldives Mohamed Muizzu (right) and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi in July 2025. Photo: Indian Press Information Bureau (PIB) / AFP

Maldives’ plea to restart South Asian bloc hits India-Pakistan brick wall

Pakistani hardline organisation Jamaat-ud-Dawa supporters burn a poster of then Indian home minister Rajnath Singh as he arrives in Lahore for a Saarc summit in Lahore on August 3, 2016. Photo: AFP

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during the 18th Saarc summit in Kathmandu, Nepal, on November 26, 2014. Photo: AP

An activist holds the national flag in front a banner praising the Indian defence forces for their military operation, code-named Operation Sindoor, in Mumbai on May 10, 2025. Photo: AFP

Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) meets Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on June 26. Photo: Xinhua

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Ties have been strained by Sheikh Hasina’s self-exile in New Delhi, with Bangladesh ruling out a visit by its president to India for now


Ties have been strained by Sheikh Hasina’s self-exile in New Delhi, with Bangladesh ruling out a visit by its president to India for now.


Bangladesh’s energy crisis opens door for India to mend ties

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Ties have been strained by Sheikh Hasina’s self-exile in New Delhi, with Bangladesh ruling out a visit by its president to India for now

Ties have been strained by Sheikh Hasina’s self-exile in New Delhi, with Bangladesh ruling out a visit by its president to India for now