Leaders of 7 neighbouring nations to attend PM’s swearing-in

New Delhi: Leaders from seven neighbouring countries and the Indian Ocean region, including Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, will attend Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony on June 9.

The visit of these leaders to attend Modi’s inauguration is “in keeping with the highest priority accorded by India” to its “Neighbourhood First” policy and “SAGAR” or Security and Growth for All in the Region vision, the external affairs ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Besides Hasina and Muizzu, the other leaders attending the ceremony are Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Seychelles vice president Ahmed Afif, Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay.

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In addition to participating in the swearing-in ceremony, the leaders will attend a banquet hosted by President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Sunday evening, the statement said.

HT had reported on Thursday that India’s “Neighbourhood First” policy and the focus on cooperation with Indian Ocean states were the main factors behind the decision to invite the leaders of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, the Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles and Sri Lanka to the inauguration.

Bangladesh is currently the main beneficiary of the “Neighbourhood First” policy, having received aid worth billions of dollars to boost road, rail and energy connectivity, and Hasina was expected to visit India following her victory in the general election in January before travelling to China next month.

However, Hasina’s participation in Modi’s swearing-in ceremony means that she is unlikely to go ahead with a full-fledged bilateral visit to India, as had been planned earlier. The Bangladesh premier will not be able to travel during the Eid-ul-Azha holidays in mid-June, and she will subsequently be pre-occupied with the budget session of the Parliament, people familiar with the matter said.

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Muizzu was a surprise addition to the list of invitees, especially amid the strained relations between India and the Maldives since his election last year on the back of an “India Out” campaign. Muizzu has taken a range of steps to move the Maldives closer to China, such as forcing India to recall more than 85 military personnel who were stationed in the Indian Ocean archipelago to operate two helicopters and an aircraft mainly used for medical evacuations and humanitarian relief operations. He has also signed agreements with Turkey and China for the supply of food items and defence equipment – steps that are seen as being aimed at reducing dependence on India.

It was not immediately clear whether Modi will hold separate bilateral meetings with all the visiting leaders. While the Bangladesh premier and the Seychelles president are scheduled to arrive in New Delhi on Saturday, all the other leaders are set to fly into the national capital only on Sunday. The Nepal prime minister will arrive in New Delhi about four hours ahead of the swearing-in ceremony.