Sudhakar Dalela next Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh

India will soon appoint Sudhakar Dalela as new High Commissioner to Bangladesh.

The incumbent High Commissioner Vikram Doraiswami is being tipped as High Commissioner of the United Kingdom.

Dalela is presently Deputy Chief of Mission in Washington DC. Once he served in Indian High Commission in Dhaka as political counsellor.

He joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1993. He began his diplomatic career in Tel Aviv, Israel, where he also acquired proficiency in Hebrew. He has since served in Indian Missions in Brasilia, Chicago, Geneva, Dhaka and Washington DC.

In Washington, this was his third assignment. He previously served as Minister (Political Affairs) at the Indian Embassy in Washington D.C., and most recently as India's Consul General in Chicago.

Ambassador Dalela has served in critical roles in New Delhi, including Director in the Prime Minister’s Office, focusing on India's engagement with its South Asian neighbors, China, and countries in the Indo-Pacific region, Gulf, Middle East, Africa, and as Joint Secretary (North), overseeing India’s relations with Bhutan and Nepal.

He brings a wealth of experience in trade and economic policy to his role, having served twice at the Permanent Mission of India to the WTO, including as India's Deputy Permanent Representative.

Before joining the Foreign Service, Ambassador Dalela earned a bachelor’s degree in Electronics Engineering. He is married to Namrata, who is a textile conservator and they have a daughter and son.

Vikram Doraiswami is expected to take over as Indian envoy to United Kingdom. He will replace Gaitri Issar Kumar, who superannuated on June 30, 2022.

A professional and hardworking diplomat Doraiswami has been central to close bilateral relationship with Dhaka with the officer pushing for cementing ties with Bangladesh through infrastructure and defence cooperation.

His appointment as High Commissioner to UK comes after the Modi government went through a several month-long deep selection process including looking at the possibility having a political appointee as envoy to London.

The Indian relationship with UK is close but has number of friction points relating to London’s desire to play the erstwhile Imperial Raj angle in Afghanistan and Pakistan. UK has often dabbled on issues pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir in the past due to its domestic Mirpuri Muslim vote banks.

The country is also responsible for several issues related to giving shelter to Sikh radicals as well as allowing them to raise funds against India.

However, India and UK are currently negotiating towards a free trade agreement.