Days after an outage affected the Adani Power-operated thermal plant in Jharkhand that supplies electricity to Bangladesh, a senior leader of Bangladesh's ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) alleged that the shutdown was connected to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's decision to skip the BRICS summit in New Delhi last weekend.
The Daily Star, a Dhaka-based newspaper, reported the remarks under the headline, “PM Tarique decided not to attend BRICS, next day Adani unit shut down: Rizvi.” Another Bangladeshi outlet, JagoNews24, reported Rizvi's comments with the headline, “Adani may cut power supply anytime: Rizvi.”
One unit of Adani Power's Godda plant in Jharkhand shut down late on September 10 following a boiler fault, reducing the facility's electricity supply to Bangladesh by about half. The unit was brought back online on September 13. Bangladesh was already dealing with an electricity shortage of roughly 2,500 MW, leading to power cuts lasting between three and 10 hours a day across several areas.
BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi alleged on Wednesday that India was creating a “web of conspiracy” against Bangladesh while speaking at an event outside Dhaka's Jatiya Press Club, according to The Daily Star. The Bangladeshi outlet The Financial Express reported that he also said Rahman's decision not to attend the BRICS Summit demonstrated Bangladesh's commitment to its “independence and sovereignty”.
Rizvi made the comments while serving as the chief guest at a human chain and protest rally. The programme, organised by two BNP-affiliated organisations, was held to protest what the organisers described as “a conspiracy against Bangladesh's Independence and sovereignty by fallen autocratic killer Hasina at India's instigation.”
Rizvi is the BNP's acting Secretary General, a position that functions as the party's chief executive role and ranks second only to the party chairman, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Bangladesh's President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir previously held the position now occupied by Rizvi before being elected president in August.
Rizvi has previously made statements critical of India. In December 2024, while calling for a boycott of Indian-made products, he publicly burned an Indian saree belonging to his wife during an event in Rajshahi.
GODDA OUTAGE LINKED TO TARIQUE'S BRICS DECISION, CLAIMS RIZVI
At the Dhaka event, Rizvi connected Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's decision to stay away from the BRICS Summit in New Delhi with the shutdown at the Adani Power-operated Godda plant.
“He [Tarique] decided not to go, and the next day it was shut down. What was the reason behind that? Do you need to pass the bar exam to understand it? Do you need a PhD from a university? We understand what happened,” he was quoted as saying by The Daily Star.
JagoNews24 quoted Rizvi as saying that because the power plant was located in India, its electricity supply could potentially be switched on or off whenever required.
“The power plant supplies 1,300MW of electricity to Bangladesh. But its switch is in Jharkhand, India. They can turn it off and on at any time,” he said.
In reality, one of the two 800-MW units at the 1,600-MW Godda plant had to be taken offline late on September 10 because of a boiler issue. The disruption reduced the plant's supply to Bangladesh from 1,496 MW to below 800 MW while the country was already experiencing a serious energy shortage. The technical problem was fixed by September 13.
This was not the first occasion on which Rizvi raised questions about disruptions at the Godda plant.
On September 12, he questioned whether sabotage could have been responsible for repeated technical problems affecting Bangladesh's energy infrastructure.
“The failure of a unit of Adani Power Plant after a technical fault at the FSRU in Maheshkhali [LNG terminal failed] has raised questions in people's minds. Is there any mystery behind this? Is there any sabotage going on somewhere? Why is there one technical fault after another now?” he said in a statement posted on Facebook by the BNP Media Cell.
The LNG terminal at Maheshkhali in eastern Bangladesh was shut on July 21 after a fire damaged electrical cables connected to its boiler system. The incident reduced the supply of gas to Bangladesh's national grid by around 450 million cubic feet per day. Supply partially resumed on August 6 but the terminal was taken offline again on August 14 following another technical issue.
RAHMAN'S INDIA DECISION AND BANGLADESH'S SOVEREIGNTY
On Tarique Rahman's decision not to attend the BRICS Summit, Rizvi said the move was intended to protect Bangladesh's “independence and sovereignty”.
“Tarique Rahman is the prime minister of an independent and sovereign country. You will not invite him as prime minister and expect him to sit on the sidelines. That cannot happen,” The Financial Express quoted Rizvi as saying.
India, however, has maintained that Rahman was invited twice. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed in August that India had invited Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to the BRICS Outreach session in New Delhi in his capacity as the sitting chair of BIMSTEC, consistent with the practice of inviting leaders of regional organisations.
On September 15, after Bangladeshi officials questioned the nature of the invitation, Jaiswal clarified that Rahman had received two separate invitations.
“One on the bilateral side and the other for the Brics Summit as well,” Jaiswal said.
The second invitation was specifically for the BRICS Outreach session and was not extended to Rahman as the leader of a BRICS member or partner country.
Rizvi's allegations against India were not accompanied by evidence, while the disruptions at both the Godda plant and Maheshkhali LNG terminal have been attributed to technical problems. India has repeatedly said that its relationship with Bangladesh is centred on the people of both countries and their shared interests.
