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Office said he has not spoken to media since his return and might address the issue at the government’s regular press briefing today.

Zahed returned to Bangladesh yesterday, a day after the incident at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, where he was kept waiting for over two hours by Indian immigration authorities after landing around 3:30pm.

He returned via Colombo as there were no direct flights to Dhaka at the time, sources said.

Speaking to reporters at the ministry, Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman described the incident as “unexpected and regrettable”.

“The foreign ministry is taking appropriate measures in this regard,” he said, without elaborating.

Zahed had travelled to India to attend the 28th Meeting of the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), scheduled for June 15-16 in New Delhi. It is being organised by India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

The CSO is the second-highest decision-making body of IORA and serves as the organisation’s principal coordinating mechanism.

The Bangladesh foreign ministry had informed India’s MEA of his visit through a note verbale.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Riaz Hamidullah also informed MEA officials of the adviser’s visit. On Sunday, he had gone to the airport to receive Zahed.

Responding to a question, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam said they do not expect such incidents and this one was “certainly unwelcoming”.

“Our ministry is looking into the matter and communicating with India. We will certainly take action, if required, once the full details are known.”

She added that the ministry was first trying to determine exactly what had happened at the airport and would then take whatever steps were necessary.

The developments come at a time when Bangladesh and India have been trying to improve ties that soured after the fall of the Awami League government in August 2024.

Both countries had imposed trade restrictions that affected businesses, while Indian missions in Bangladesh reduced the issuance of visas.

After the February 2026 election, top Indian officials attended the swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected BNP government. Bangladesh subsequently resumed issuing all categories of visas to Indian nationals.

However, recent attempts by Indian authorities to push people into Bangladesh since the Bharatiya Janata Party assumed power in West Bengal and Assam have emerged as a new irritant in the bilateral relations.

Border Guard Bangladesh has so far thwarted about 40 push-in attempts since early June this year.

Foreign policy analysts say the attempts to push people into Bangladesh could undermine efforts to improve relations between the two countries.

Contacted by The Daily Star, a former Bangladeshi diplomat, requesting anonymity, said the push-in attempts and the reported treatment of the prime minister’s adviser at immigration “are not helpful”.

“During the interim government’s tenure, some top officials made odd comments about India, but the current government seems measured in this regard. However, the relationship is still not improving.

“Dr Zahed was travelling for an official event, and the Bangladesh government sent a diplomatic note. Such an incident should not have occurred. I guess India is trying to keep Bangladesh under pressure.”

Foreign policy analyst Shahed Akhtar, also former Bangladeshi ambassador to Spain, Thailand and Cambodia, said it was important to focus on the broader objectives of the bilateral relationship and that both countries should proceed accordingly in their national interests.

“There may be some irritants in relations between neighbouring countries. We should address those issues case by case so that they do not affect the overall relationship.”