The ouster of Bangladesh's autocratic prime minister sparked celebrations in Dhaka this week but alarm in neighbouring India, which backed Sheikh Hasina to counter rival China, analysts say.
It has created a diplomatic dilemma for the regional power.
Hasina, 76, resigned as prime minister in the face of a student-led uprising on Monday and fled by helicopter to New Delhi, her former ally.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first to offer his “best wishes” after Bangladesh's newly sworn-in interim leader Muhammad Yunus took power on Thursday, saying New Delhi was “committed” to working with Dhaka.
But China was also quick to welcome the new authorities in Dhaka, saying it “attaches importance to the development” of relations.
Now that Hasina's rivals are in control of Dhaka, India's support for the former government has once again come into play.
“From the Bangladeshi perspective, India has been on the wrong side for a couple of years,” said International Crisis Group analyst Thomas Kean.
“The Indian government did not want to see any change in Dhaka at all and had made it very clear for years that it saw no alternative to Hasina and the Awami League.”
'Harmful'
Bangladesh is almost entirely surrounded by India, with a deeply intertwined history long before it separated from the Indian subcontinent in 1947.
But while Bangladesh's population of 1.4 billion and dominant economy dwarf that of 170 million, Hasina has also courted China.
India and China, the world's two most populous nations, are intense rivals vying for strategic influence in South Asia, including Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
Hasina has struck a delicate balance, benefiting from New Delhi's support while maintaining strong relations with Beijing.
New Delhi saw a common threat in groups Hasina considered rivals and crushed them with brutal force, including the key Bangladesh National Party (BNP).
“India… is concerned that any alternative to Hasina and the Awami League could be detrimental to its interests,” said Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Washington-based Wilson Center.
Yunus has said he wants elections in Bangladesh “within a few months.”
The BNP could be poised for a comeback, holding a massive rally in Dhaka this week.
Immediately after Hasina's fall, some businesses and homes owned by Hindus, a group believed by some in Muslim-majority Bangladesh to be pro-Hasina, were attacked.
Hundreds of Bangladeshi Hindus arrived at the Indian border this week asking to cross.
Hindu nationalist leader Modi said Thursday he hoped for “an early return to normalcy, ensuring the safety and security of Hindus and all other minority communities.”
'She will return'
Hasina's refugee status in India could prove to be an obstacle to relations between New Delhi and Dhaka.
Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told parliament that Hasina had flown to India “at very short notice” and had, according to Indian media, intended to stay only briefly in transit.
But his planned attempt to travel to Britain was thwarted after London called for a “full and independent UN-led investigation” into the deadly crackdown on protests in the final weeks of his government.
The United States has in the past praised Hasina's economic record and seen her as a partner on priorities such as fighting extremism, but more recently Washington has imposed visa sanctions over concerns about democracy.
It is unclear how long he will remain in India or where else he might go.
Since arriving at the military air base near New Delhi, she has been staying in a secret safe house and has not spoken publicly.
Her daughter, Saima Wazed, said she was “heartbroken” at not being able to see her mother.
“As much as I would love to see Ma, I do not want to compromise his whereabouts in any way,” Wazed, the World Health Organization's Southeast Asia chief, said in a since-deleted post on social media platform X.
His son Sajeeb Wazed Joy told the Times of India Newspaper Her mother still hoped to be able to run for political office.
“He will return to Bangladesh when the interim government decides to hold elections,” he said.
