Foreign Minister Bala Nanda Sharma will represent Nepal at Tuesday's swearing-in of new Bangladeshi prime minister, Tarique Rahman, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Monday.

The interim government of Bangladesh had invited Prime Minister Sushila Karki to attend the ceremony, but with elections approaching on March 5, she decided to send Sharma in her place, officials said.

Accordingly, Sharma left for Dhaka on Monday. Rahman, leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), won a landslide victory last week, following the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August, 2024. The BNP won 209 of 297 seats, marking a new political dispensation in Dhaka.

After the sweeping victory of BNP, Prime Minister Karki wrote in X, "I look forward to working closely with you to strengthen our neighbourly ties and consolidate cooperation in areas of mutual interest.”

"Warm congratulations to the Government and the people of Bangladesh on the successful conduct of the 13th parliamentary elections," she said in a message noting that Nepal has strong ties with Bangladesh.

The ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon at the South Plaza of the National Parliament in Dhaka.

“The foreign minister’s visit reflects Nepal’s commitment to further strengthening bilateral relations and deepening the bonds of cooperation between Nepal and Bangladesh,” said the foreign ministry, in a statement.

Sharma is accompanied by senior officials and is scheduled to return home on Thursday. The chief adviser of the interim government, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, invited heads of the states and government of 13 countries to the oath-taking ceremony. Barring Afghanistan, all SAARC member states have been invited, along with representatives from China, Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Malaysia and Brunei.

Earlier, on December 31, Sharma visited Dhaka to attend the state funeral of Begum Khaleda Zia, former prime minister of Bangladesh and chair of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Rahman is Zia’s son.

During that visit, Sharma met Rahman, conveyed Nepal’s condolences, and acknowledged Zia’s role in Bangladesh’s political and democratic journey. Rahman thanked the foreign minister for attending the funeral and expressed hope for continued cooperation between Nepal and Bangladesh, according to the foreign ministry.

During the same visit, Sharma had also met the chief adviser to the interim government, Yunus, and handed over a message of condolence from Prime Minister Karki.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, discussions during the meeting covered bilateral relations and explored ways to enhance cooperation in areas such as trade, energy, connectivity, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges.