Some dinners make for good diplomacy, some others do not. The dinner that the external affairs minister, Mr K. Natwar Singh, hosted for the visiting Bangladeshi opposition leader, Sheikh Hasina Wajed, was, to say the least, ill-timed. Dhaka cannot be happy that Ms Wajed received such attention in New Delhi during a private visit, that too on the eve of a possible first meeting between the prime ministers of the two countries on the sidelines of a regional meeting in Bangkok. Ms Wajed’s visit to New Delhi is bound to cloud the talks between the two prime ministers. The timing apart, there are good reasons why the Indian leadership should have been careful not to send out wrong signals to Dhaka. Ms Wajed’s party, the Bangladesh Awami League, has been on a collision course with the government of Begum Khaleda Zia for many months now. New Delhi cannot afford to give an impression that it has a stake in Bangladesh’s domestic politics. Unfortunately, an overzealous welcome to Ms Wajed could send out exactly that impression to Dhaka. This will not help dispel the perception in Bangladesh that India is partial to Ms Wajed’s party.

In fact, relations between the countries have been held hostage to political rhetoric for far too long. The two major economic issues — the export of Bangladesh’s gas to India and a road transit route through Bangladesh to India’s North-east — have become major political controversies in Dhaka. But the signing of the agreement on the sharing of Ganga water and the introduction of bus services across the border offered new promises. Apart from their obvious economic benefits, the agreements showed that the two countries could do business with each other irrespective of the political colours of their governments. The meeting in Bangkok also reflects a new resolve of the countries in the region to interact more closely among themselves on trade and other issues. Dhaka has long complained of an unfair tariff barrier on the export of its goods to India. Although New Delhi withdrew the tariffs on 30-odd Bangladeshi items last year, Dhaka wanted more of its goods to be covered by the duty-free trade. India, on the other hand, has been seeking closer cooperation from Dhaka on tackling terrorism. New Delhi is also concerned over reported shelters of northeastern militants inside Bangladesh. But diplomatic irritants, such as the one concerning Ms Wajed’s visit, will only confirm mutual suspicions.