Bangladesh Cancels Training Program for Judicial Officers in India

Dhaka, January 5, 2025: The decision to send 50 judicial officers from subordinate courts in Bangladesh for training at the National Judicial Academy and State Judicial Academy in Bhopal, India, has been canceled.

A notification issued by Dr. Abul Hasanat, Deputy Secretary (Training) of the Ministry of Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs, confirmed the cancellation. The notification, dated Sunday (January 5), stated that the training program, originally scheduled to take place between February 10 and 20, 2025, in India, would no longer proceed.

According to the notification, the program had been approved earlier in line with a directive from the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, which had granted permission for 50 judicial officers to attend. However, following the Supreme Court’s latest instructions, the earlier approval has been revoked.

The 50 judicial officers, who included Assistant Judges, Senior Assistant Judges, Joint District and Sessions Judges, Additional District and Sessions Judges, District and Sessions Judges, and other similar-ranking officials, were slated to receive training at the renowned National Judicial Academy and State Judicial Academy in Bhopal, India. The Indian government was to bear the full cost of the training, with no financial involvement from the Bangladesh government.

The decision to send these officers to India was made public on December 30, 2024, when the Ministry of Law issued a formal notification granting the 50 officers permission to attend the training. However, the decision has now been reversed, likely due to mounting criticism on social media. Many commentators accused the government of Yunus (the interim government) of submitting to India, pointing out the contradiction with the anti-India sentiments that have been growing in Bangladesh over recent months.

The training, which was scheduled to be free of cost to Bangladesh, has now been canceled following the backlash. Many social media users highlighted the irony of sending judicial officers for training in India despite a recent wave of anti-India rhetoric in the country. Despite these sentiments, imports of essential goods such as rice, potatoes, and metro cards from India have continued uninterrupted.

In recent months, the political landscape in Bangladesh has been marked by several significant events, including the student-led protests that led to the replacement of the Sheikh Hasina government with an interim administration under Yunus. Additionally, incidents such as the arrest of a Hindu monk, widespread persecution of minorities, and protests from India have further strained relations between the two countries.

These tensions, combined with increasing anti-India sentiment in Bangladesh, have played a role in the reversal of the decision to send the judicial officers for training in India.