India reopens Dhaka visa centre as protests keep Khulna, Rajshahi facilities shut

Visa services disrupted amid Bangladesh unrest

India on Thursday resumed services at its Indian Visa Application Centre (IVAC) in Dhaka, a day after operations were suspended amid security concerns linked to an anti-India march planned towards the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh. Two other IVAC facilities elsewhere in the country, however, remained closed due to security reasons.

The IVAC at Jamuna Future Park in Dhaka, which serves as the primary integrated centre for Indian visa services in the capital, was reopened after being shut following a call by hardline group July Oikyo for a “March to Indian High Commission”. The group had demanded the return of former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, who were sentenced to death for crimes against humanity, PTI reported.

By contrast, IVACs in southwestern Khulna and northwestern Rajshahi continued to remain shut amid strong protest marches towards the facilities.

An official notice on the IVAC website stated, “In view of the on-going security situation, we wish to bring to your kind notice that IVAC Rajshahi and Khulna will be closed today (18.12.2025). All applicants who have appointment slots booked for submission today will be given a slot at a later date.”

In Rajshahi, dozens of protesters attempted to march towards the office of the Assistant Indian High Commissioner on Thursday, calling for the “repatriation of all the killers including Sheikh Hasina.” Police stopped the procession, saying they had noted the demonstrators’ demands and would pass them on to the authorities. A brief clash broke out when protesters tried to breach security barricades, prompting police in riot gear to block access near the mission.

In Khulna, protesters under the banner ‘Unity Against Indian Hegemony’ also attempted to march towards the Assistant High Commission but were prevented by security forces.

“We had enforced a stringent vigil preventing them (protestors) from proceeding towards the mission. They left the scene after staging a ‘peaceful’ rally,” Khulna deputy commissioner of police Tajul Islam said, as quoted by the news agency.

Anti-India protests have been reported in Dhaka and other parts of Bangladesh for some time.

Bangladesh has five IVAC centres in total. Apart from Dhaka, Khulna and Rajshahi, the remaining centres are located in the port city of Chattogram and in Sylhet.

The developments followed India’s decision to summon Bangladesh’s High Commissioner in New Delhi, Muhammad Riaz Hamidullah, to lodge a formal diplomatic protest over recent threats to the Indian High Commission in Dhaka and what it described as inflammatory anti-India remarks by Bangladeshi political leaders.

Earlier this week, Bangladesh’s foreign ministry summoned India’s envoy to Dhaka, Pranay Verma, to convey its concerns over former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s “incendiary” statements made from Indian soil.

Responding to Dhaka’s move, New Delhi said it has never permitted its territory to be used for activities inimical to Bangladesh’s interests.

India–Bangladesh relations under strain

India–Bangladesh relations have remained strained since the collapse of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5, 2024, following student-led protests. Hasina fled to India after her ouster and has since been staying at a secure location in New Delhi.

The former prime minister, who resigned, was recently sentenced to death by Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal for alleged crimes against humanity linked to the protests. The court found her guilty on three counts, concluding a months-long trial over her role in ordering a violent crackdown on last year’s student-led uprising that led to the fall of her Awami League government.

Dhaka has repeatedly sought her extradition, a request that New Delhi says remains under “consideration”.

Bangladesh is currently being run by a caretaker administration headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.

(With inputs from agencies)