Dhaka won’t allow insurgency, PM reiterates
Putting emphasis on maintaining peaceful atmosphere in this region, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today reaffirmed Bangladesh’s firm commitment not to allow the country’s soil to be used for insurgency.
“We want peaceful atmosphere in this region … we won’t allow the country’s land to be used for insurgency,” she said.
The Prime Minister made the comments when Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pankaj Saran paid a farewell call on her at her office here this morning, BSS reports.
After the meeting, PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters.
Stressing the need for seeking more cooperation of the neighbouring countries for the development of the country, Sheikh Hasina said: “We should work for the people and we need more cooperation and support from the neighbours.”
The Prime Minister also laid emphasis on unofficial engagements for strengthening cooperation between the neighbouring countries side by side with official visits. “Neighbours’ cooperation is a must for development of any country,” she said.
While talking about the issue of signing the historic Land Boundary Agreement (LBA), Sheikh Hasina said all members of Indian Parliament –both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha — were seen for the first time “one and united” during the ratification of the particular bill. “It’s a historic agreement,” she remarked.
The Prime Minister recalled with deep gratitude the unequivocal support and assistance rendered by the Indian people and government during Bangladesh’s War of Liberation.
“India not only extended support to Bangladesh, but also gave shelter and provided food to a huge number of people of Bangladesh.”
Extending her sincere thanks to the Indian envoy for completing his tenure in Bangladesh successfully, Sheikh Hasina mentioned the bilateral relations between the two countries have reached a new height during his term in Dhaka.
In this connection, the Premier appreciated the Indian high commissioner for his enormous contribution and instrumental role in further consolidating the ties between Dhaka and New Delhi.
Sheikh Hasina said: “We have witnessed massive development of cooperation in all sectors including security, connectivity, power and energy, trade and commerce, cultural exchange and people-to-people contact.”
Recalling the visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to India in 2010, the Indian high commissioner said the tour has opened up a new chapter of relations and added a new dimension to the bilateral ties.
“A series of achievements have been made from the visit,” he said, adding such high-level visits have brought a new momentum between the relations of the two countries,” he said.
Pankaj Saran said India values its relations with Bangladesh and said the achievements made in the bilateral cooperation have been possible due to the leadership of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
In this connection, he said the Indian people have tremendous admiration for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. “The relations between the two countries are dynamic and comprehensive and if any problems arise, we would solve those through dialogue,” Pankaj said.
The Indian high commissioner said India and Bangladesh are now working together to combat militancy and terrorism. “We would continue to work to root out terrorism and militancy,” he said.
Pankaj Saran highly praised Bangladesh’s socioeconomic progress, particularly the maintenance of more than six percent GDP growth over the last six years.
While talking about the matter of issuing Indian visa to the Bangladeshi people, the Indian high commissioner said New Delhi has already issued visa to 6.50 lakh Bangladeshis this year. “The number will be raised to seven lakh next year,” he hoped.
PM’s Principal Secretary Md Abul Kalam Azad was present at the meeting, among others.
Pankaj Saran, who served as India’s envoy to Bangladesh since 2012, has been appointed its new ambassador to Russia.
He would be replaced by Harsh Vardhan Shringla, currently Indian ambassador to Thailand.
