BJP leader is new Bangladesh envoy, with cabinet rank status: Signals this sends to Dhaka

How common is it for ambassadors to be given cabinet rank status and what does that signal?

Dinesh Trivedi is a political appointee, which means someone who is not a career diplomat [an Indian Foreign Service officer] being chosen for the envoy position. Along with that, he has also been given cabinet rank status, an important distinction.

There have been a number of political appointee envoys, though fewer under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The present ambassador to the USA, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, was till recently foreign secretary, but was sent as ambassador to the USA after retirement, so that is considered a political appointee. There is former Army chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag, who was appointed High Commissioner of India to Seychelles in 2019.

However, cabinet rank is very rare.

Under PM Modi, this is the first time that a cabinet rank has been given to a political appointee, though there have been cabinet rank ambassadors in Congress governments.

Soon after Independence, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit was an ambassador with cabinet rank. In subsequent years, TN Kaul was given cabinet rank when he went as ambassador to Moscow. Dr. Karan Singh was given cabinet rank when he went as ambassador to USA, and DP Dhar was given cabinet rank when he went a second time as ambassador to Moscow.

The purpose of giving cabinet rank is twofold. First, it indicates a direct line to the Prime Minister. As a member of the Union cabinet, you will have direct access to the Prime Minister, and not have to go through the hierarchy of foreign secretary or foreign minister.

Second, the indication is to the country where the ambassador is accredited. In this case, the signal is very clear to Dhaka that this person is held in very high political esteem by the Prime Minister of India. His functioning in that country will be of a very special kind, meeting only cabinet rank ministers or the Prime Minister of the country, and any message the High Commissioner conveys would be known to be coming straight from the Prime Minister of India. It gives a special status, and it is expected that Bangladesh would accept and recognise that.

Does this elevation have practical implications or is it more symbolic? How would a cabinet minister ambassador be treated differently from a regular ambassador?

The special status would be in terms of protocol. When that person is arriving at the airport or traveling within the country, they must have special status like the country would give to its own cabinet ministers.

Ambassadors in any country are given security and care, but when you have a person with cabinet rank, you will give a higher status in terms of security and in terms of arranging meetings, just like for a cabinet minister of your own country.

India-Bangladesh ties have been in a state of flux for some time; what do you make of India’s decision to send a politician rather than a career diplomat to Dhaka at this point?

It signifies priority to India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ foreign policy. For Prime Minister Modi to give cabinet rank to the High Commissioner to Bangladesh indicates a high level of importance attached to this policy. He would like to make sure that the government of Bangladesh, led by Tarique Rahman, would also recognise the signal and respond likewise in terms of giving the highest importance to policy towards India.

India-Bangladesh relations have been going through a very difficult time primarily since August 2024, when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted in a coup. After the new interim regime under Muhammad Yunus came to power, our government expressed interest in continuing the relationship, but this was not reciprocated. Under his 18-month interim regime, Yunus changed the earlier project decisions, policy decisions, and special decisions in favour of India.

The expectation has been that Rahman would look at restoring the earlier positive and dynamic trade, investment, and project development relations, but so far, there has been no indication of that. Rather, his visit to China and the joint statement issued raises many more questions.