Staff Reporter :
HT Imam, political adviser to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday said in New Delhi that he believed Bangladesh and India would sign the Teesta Water-Sharing Agreement soon.
In his view the matter was no longer an irritant in the relations of the two
countries or the two governments. Imam made the observation after taking part in a programme organized by Observer Research Foundation (ORF), a leading think-tank in India and reported by Indian media and some local dailies in Dhaka on Sunday.
Imam has been quoted as replying to quarries from newsmen after delivering a speech on ” Indo-Bangladesh: Historical and Contemporary Perspective in New Delhi. He however warned BNP would try to make an issue of it in the upcoming national polls likely in December this year.
“An agreement on the Teesta water will be signed today or tomorrow. Let us be patient. It’s no longer a problem between the two neighbours. This has happened because of the goodwill shared by the two governments. This is what Sheikh Hasina has also said,” he said.
“Problems can be sorted out only through discussions and mutual help … we are taking the problems one by one and trying to solve them.” He said it was true that the Teesta issue has remained unsolved but cooperation between Bangladesh and India in other areas has expanded remarkably. He claimed that the killings at the border and smuggling of phensedyl into Bangladesh have stopped.
Asked about a BNP team’s recent visit to India, Imam termed the party “pro-Pakistan and pro-China”. He accused the party of working against India’s interests and requested New Delhi not to give it any scope.
A three-member BNP delegation, led by the party’s standing committee member Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, interacted with ORF and some other think-tanks in Delhi last month.
Imam said some of the BNP leaders, who have visited India, were “pro-Pakistan and pro-China”.
“The BNP is pro-Pakistan, pro-Jamaat-e-Islami. I don’t think any sensible government here or in Bangladesh will ever tolerate them. Both the countries have to deal with this problem together.”
He said the BNP would take part in the coming elections. Otherwise, it would “lose its registration as a political party”. According to Imam, “pro-Pakistan elements” would try to instigate violence during the election but the government in Bangladesh was ready to counter them.
Promising full cooperation to India in its fight against terrorism, Imam said the Hasina-led government would not allow Zakir Naik access to the country as it was committed to showing zero tolerance towards terrorism.
“The soil of Bangladesh will never be allowed to be used by elements hostile to our neighbours,” he said.
Replying to a question about the Awami League’s links with Hefajat-e-Islam, Imam said, “You cannot use force against thousands of madrasa students. Many in the Hefajat have turned into supporters of the AL. That is the reason why the AL has changed its strategy towards Hefajat”.
HT Imam, political adviser to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday said in New Delhi that he believed Bangladesh and India would sign the Teesta Water-Sharing Agreement soon.
In his view the matter was no longer an irritant in the relations of the two
countries or the two governments. Imam made the observation after taking part in a programme organized by Observer Research Foundation (ORF), a leading think-tank in India and reported by Indian media and some local dailies in Dhaka on Sunday.
Imam has been quoted as replying to quarries from newsmen after delivering a speech on ” Indo-Bangladesh: Historical and Contemporary Perspective in New Delhi. He however warned BNP would try to make an issue of it in the upcoming national polls likely in December this year.
“An agreement on the Teesta water will be signed today or tomorrow. Let us be patient. It’s no longer a problem between the two neighbours. This has happened because of the goodwill shared by the two governments. This is what Sheikh Hasina has also said,” he said.
“Problems can be sorted out only through discussions and mutual help … we are taking the problems one by one and trying to solve them.” He said it was true that the Teesta issue has remained unsolved but cooperation between Bangladesh and India in other areas has expanded remarkably. He claimed that the killings at the border and smuggling of phensedyl into Bangladesh have stopped.
Asked about a BNP team’s recent visit to India, Imam termed the party “pro-Pakistan and pro-China”. He accused the party of working against India’s interests and requested New Delhi not to give it any scope.
A three-member BNP delegation, led by the party’s standing committee member Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, interacted with ORF and some other think-tanks in Delhi last month.
Imam said some of the BNP leaders, who have visited India, were “pro-Pakistan and pro-China”.
“The BNP is pro-Pakistan, pro-Jamaat-e-Islami. I don’t think any sensible government here or in Bangladesh will ever tolerate them. Both the countries have to deal with this problem together.”
He said the BNP would take part in the coming elections. Otherwise, it would “lose its registration as a political party”. According to Imam, “pro-Pakistan elements” would try to instigate violence during the election but the government in Bangladesh was ready to counter them.
Promising full cooperation to India in its fight against terrorism, Imam said the Hasina-led government would not allow Zakir Naik access to the country as it was committed to showing zero tolerance towards terrorism.
“The soil of Bangladesh will never be allowed to be used by elements hostile to our neighbours,” he said.
Replying to a question about the Awami League’s links with Hefajat-e-Islam, Imam said, “You cannot use force against thousands of madrasa students. Many in the Hefajat have turned into supporters of the AL. That is the reason why the AL has changed its strategy towards Hefajat”.
