Narendra Modi's Bangladesh visit deferred, says MEA; prime minister was scheduled to attend Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's birth centenary celebrations

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangladesh next week has been deferred, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has stated on Monday. The decision was taken after Bangladesh decided to postpone the birth centenary celebrations of its founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in light of the coronavirus outbreak in the country, said the MEA. [caption id=“attachment_7989861” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of Narendra Modi. PTI[/caption] The MEA said it has received formal notification from Bangladesh that a decision has been taken by them to defer the public events being organised to celebrate the birth centenary of the Father of Bangladesh, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The celebrations have been postponed after three coronavirus cases were detected in the country on Sunday and due to “the larger global public health situation” in this regard. The public gathering scheduled for 17 March, for which the prime minister was invited, has also been postponed, said the MEA. The prime minister was expected to visit Bangladesh from 16 to 18 March. During his visit, Modi was expected to hold wide-ranging bilateral talks with  his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina and participate in the birth centenary celebrations on 17 March. The invitation to Modi had sparked protests in Bangladesh, with some calling on the government to withdraw the invite in light of the recent communal riots in Delhi . With inputs from agencies