Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan hails bilateral ties; hopeful of early resolve to Teesta issue

Dhaka, Nov 24: Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan shared that he is hopeful for early resolve of the long standing Teesta river issue. Khan hailed the ties between New Delhi and Dhaka and said that the unprecedented support during the 1971 Liberation War was the root of the bonhomie between the two countries.

 

 

 

 

According to the reports of ANI, Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said, "I think our relationship should be viewed in the context of shared history, common heritage, cultural affinity, and identical social norms. India's unprecedented support during the 1971 Liberation War of Bangladesh by providing military assistance, extending shelter to 10 million refugees, etc--was the root of the bonhomie between these two countries."

 

 

 

 

 

"Over the years, the mutual respect for independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and strong political will from both sides contributed substantially to blossoming this bond," he added. Asaduzzaman Khan, who came to India to attend the Ministerial Conference of 'No Money for Terror' last week, met Home Minister Amit Shah on the sidelines of the meeting. Referring to the contentious issue of Teesta River water sharing, the Bangladeshi Minister said that he hopes that the issue will be solved at the earliest.

 

"The sharing of the Teesta waters has been a longstanding demand of Bangladesh since the livelihood of millions is attached to the river's water. In 2011, India agreed to share 37.5 per cent of Teesta waters while retaining 42.5 per cent of the waters during the lean season between December and March. However, the deal never went through due to internal problems in India. We hope it will be solved at the earliest as the sharing of the Teesta waters currently holds the key to improved India-Bangladesh relations," he added.