Bangladesh’s border is set to lose much of its peculiarity with India’s passage of a bill that ratified a 1974 land boundary deal between the two neighbours, paving the way for rehabilitation and resettlement of the inhabitants.
The peculiarity, more like anomalies, stems from the numerous sovereign enclaves – over 160, of which several are enclaves within enclaves – where inhabitants remained in a virtual state of statelessness for decades without any modern amenities that their fellow citizens enjoy.
There are similar enclaves scattered in remote patches of Europe and Africa, about 50, but few have seen their citizens abandoned to such despair.
Folklore has it that such a high number of enclaves, accounting for over three-fourths in the world, was the result of a series of chess games between the Maharaja of Cooch Behar, now a West Bengal district, and the Faujdar of Rangpur. The two wagered villages for their games.
In a more scholastically tempered account, Brendan R Whyte, the assistant curator of maps at the Australian National Library, indicates that the enclaves resulted from peace treaties in 1711 and 1713 between the Cooch Behar kingdom and the Mughal Empire, “ending a long series of wars in which the Mughals wrested several districts from Cooch Behar.”
The patches remained through the ages even when the subcontinent was divided and carried on through the birth of Bangladesh.
However, that is about to change with the ratification of a four-decade-old treaty to swap these territories which will see Bangladesh gaining about 4,047 hectares of land in the process.
Commentators and former diplomats say that now is the time to look forward to the rehabilitation of the inhabitants, who will be given the opportunity to choose their citizenship.
Imtiaz Ahmed, professor of international relations at Dhaka University, said the main challenge was to rehabilitate these people because of the bureaucratic hassle that characterises government activities.
Advising caution not to further traumatise these people with bureaucratic tangles, he said: “Providing them with voter ID cards, passports, land and other privileges should go smoothly.”
Professor Imtiaz also said there were some other disputes with India and the sooner those were resolved, the better. “I hope they will not take another 40 years.”
There are more than 14,000 people living in the Bangladeshi exclaves while Indian exclaves are home to over 37,000 people.
Anisul Islam Mahmud, a former foreign minister, thinks that the main hurdle has been overcome and from here on it will be smooth sailing.
“Implementation is not a problem. The big thing is that Indian parliament has passed the bill unanimously. Other issues will be resolved as a new window has opened.”
The bicameral Indian parliament passed a bill to amend its constitution on Wednesday in Rajya Sabha, and on Thursday in Lok Sabha.
Abul Hasan Chowdhury, another former foreign minister, said although long overdue, there was no doubt that this was a very positive outcome. He only hoped that the wave of optimism carried on.
“I think both governments will play constructive roles in the future too. Indian Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi has shown that he has a vision and I hope that the question of Teesta water-sharing will be resolved.”
He also mentioned border killings – which he said were unacceptable – should be stopped. “I think Modi has opened a new door through which Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has taken a strong step regarding Indian security.”
The bill will also resolve disputed territories along the border accounting for 2,777 acres (921.47 hectares) under Bangladeshi possession and 2,267 acres (917.42 hectares) under Indian possession.
Delwar Hossain, professor of international relations at Dhaka University, said: “This accord will add to further cementing the relationship between the two neighbours. Implementation of the accord is not a problem given the precise guideline.”
He said India has already surveyed and found that some 8-10% enclave residents have indicated their preference for Bangladeshi citizenship. Bangladesh is yet to conduct any such survey though.
“Rehabilitation is not a problem as we have resources and we will gain some land through the accord too. It is the government’s will and bureaucratic role that is important. The government has to conduct a proper survey to ascertain how many want to stay back and how many want to become Indians.”
He warned that the government should exercise much caution in order not to inflict further sufferings on the hapless enclave residents. “This should be dealt with befitting empathy.”
While India has already allocated funds for rehabilitating enclave residents, Bangladesh is yet to follow suit. The state minister for foreign affairs has hinted the government’s commitment to providing them with civic amenities towards a better life.
Mostafa Farruque Mohammed, former ambassador in New Delhi and president of Bangladesh-India Citizen Society, said: “The ratification of the land boundary deal is a diplomatic success. Bangladesh-India relations have marked a historic milestone through the passage of the bill and a longstanding problem of the two neighbours will be resolved.”
Tareque Shamsur Rahman, professor of international relations at Jahangirnagar University, said this marked a new high in Indo-Bangla relations.
“This initiative is a part of the Modi government’s commitment to establishing good ties among its South Asian neighbours. As both governments have reached an understanding, the other problems including Teesta treaty, border killings, trade imbalance and Tipaimukh dam will also be resolved.”
He also said rehabilitation of the enclave residents would not be a challenge but the government would have to allocate funds for these people as has the Indian government.
