Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali said his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj told him that the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was positive about Teesta water sharing agreement.
In an interview with The Indian Express, Mahmood said: “She [Sushma] has indicated that (West Bengal Chief Minister) Mamata Banerjee is positive.”
Sushma visited Dhaka from June 25-27 and both the ministers had official talks on Thursday.
The Indian government had started work on building internal consensus and hoped to get it through soon, Mahmood said, when asked if he thought the Indian government was capable of signing the treaty.
When contacted with the Foreign Ministry, it confirmed that the minister made the remarks.
Bangladesh and India have been negotiating on Teesta water sharing agreement for four decades. The deal was scheduled to be signed in 2011 during the visit of the then Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, but it could not be inked due to strong opposition from Mamata.
About the land boundary agreement, the minister said Sushma had expressed her resolve to get it through.
“New members will be appointed for the parliamentary committee. We hope it will get cleared very soon. And the BJP has an overwhelming majority, so it will not be a problem,” Mahmood quoted the Indian foreign minister as saying.
Bangladesh and India signed LBA in 1974 and Dhaka ratified it in the same year, but New Delhi is yet to do so.
A constitutional amendment bill was placed before Rajya Sabha – the upper house of Indian parliament – to pave the way for ratifying the LBA, but the bill is yet to be passed.
BJP during the election campaign took stance not to hurriedly ratify the LBA.
Sari diplomacy
However, diplomacy got the feminine touch during the visit of Indian Foreign Minister to Dhaka when Bangladeshi leaders, mostly women, met Sushma Swaraj and presented her with saris.
During her three-day official trip, Sushma called on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, Opposition Leader Rawshan Ershad, sister and daughter of the prime minister Sheikh Rehana and Saima Wazed Putul respectively.
Sheikh Hasina and Sushma discussed issues of connectivity, security, visa – all wrapped in sari – as the prime minister presented her with a beautiful Dhakai Jamdani sari.
Bangladesh promotes Jamdani sari, a heritage of this country, and often gives it to foreign dignitaries as gift.
Khaleda Zia also presented the Indian leader with several exquisite saris.
Rawshan Ershad followed the path of the two women leaders too and greeted Sushma with saris.
The foreign minister did not take part in sari diplomacy, but ensured that members of the Indian delegation returned home with Jamdani saris.
The Indian delegation was comprised of Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh and Joint Secretary Sripriya Ranganathan, who is in charge of Bangladesh and Myanmar wing at the External Affairs Ministry.