Tarique’s India visit unlikely before UNGA
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s proposed visit to India is unlikely to take place before the upcoming United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) while the renewal of the Ganges Water Sharing Treaty is gaining opposition in India’s Bihar state.
“There is no possibility of the prime minister’s visit to India before the upcoming UNGA session,” State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir told journalists after a discussion with leaders of the Electronic Media Journalist Association at a hotel in Sylhet on Saturday.
He said discussions between Dhaka and New Delhi over the proposed visit were continuing, but its date had not yet been finalised.
Kobir said Tarique would attend the 81st UNGA session with a message on the progress of the “new Bangladesh” and might meet US President Donald Trump on the sidelines.
Recently Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi said on September 2, after meeting Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad and Deputy Speaker Barrister Kayser Kamal at the Jatiya Sangsad, that the visit depended on the Bangladesh prime minister.
He also described Tarique as an intelligent and pro-people leader and said the two countries should maintain people-oriented relations.
Trivedi had earlier expressed hope that Tarique’s visit would take place “much sooner”, saying direct engagement between the two prime ministers could help resolve outstanding bilateral issues.
However, on Friday, Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal gave no indication of any progress on the visit during his weekly media briefing.
Asked by Indian journalists about the proposed visit, Jaiswal said there was no update to share regarding Tarique’s participation in the upcoming BRICS summit in New Delhi.
The contrasting signals have left the timing of the proposed visit uncertain, with Dhaka now making clear that no trip is expected before the UNGA session.
Meanwhile, the uncertainty comes at a particularly important moment for Bangladesh as the 30-year Ganges Water Sharing Treaty, signed on December 12, 1996, is due to expire in December.
For Dhaka, renewal of the treaty on an equitable basis is a major national interest.
Bangladesh relies heavily on the Ganges-Padma system for agriculture, fisheries, navigation, river ecology and the livelihoods of millions of people, particularly in the south-western region.
But opposition to renewal is gaining momentum inside India, particularly in Bihar.
Bihar’s ruling Janata Dal (United), an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party, announced on Friday that it would launch a mass-contact campaign to intensify its opposition to the Ganges water-sharing agreement with Bangladesh.
JD(U) state president Umesh Kushwaha said the party’s working president Sanjay Kumar Jha and other senior leaders would undertake a “Nitish Samvad Yatra” covering 12 districts along the Ganga.
The programme began in Buxar on Saturday and is scheduled to travel through districts along the river before concluding in Katihar.
According to Kushwaha, the route follows the course of the Ganga through Bihar and is intended to allow party leaders to meet residents, assess the situation and hear their grievances.
Kushwaha said the JD(U)’s position reflected the longstanding stance of former Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, arguing that Bihar’s interests must be taken into account in any decision on renewal.
“Our leader Nitish Kumar has always spoken against the treaty. Now, as the term of the agreement is about to end, our stand is clear that it should not be renewed as it hampers the interests of people of Bihar,” he said.
The JD(U) leader also criticised the political circumstances surrounding the signing of the 1996 treaty, blaming the then Bihar government led by Lalu Prasad and the central government headed by HD Deve Gowda for failing to adequately consider Bihar’s interests.
Kushwaha claimed that silt accumulation on the Indian side of the Farakka Barrage contributes to water being diverted into other channels, resulting in severe flooding and destruction across Bihar.
He said the state had endured such flooding for decades and pledged to raise Bihar’s concerns at the international level.
The development is significant for Bangladesh because Bihar’s opposition introduces a strong domestic political dimension into India’s negotiations over the treaty.
The JD(U)’s campaign follows recent remarks by Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar indicating that Bihar’s concerns would be considered before New Delhi reaches a decision on the treaty.
Jaishankar recently assured JD(U) working president and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Kumar Jha that Bihar’s water requirements would be taken into account in the process of deciding whether and how the Ganga treaty with Bangladesh should be renewed.
The Indian government has already held consultations with stakeholders, including Bihar, on the issue.
For Bangladesh, the development raises concerns that India’s internal water demands could increasingly influence negotiations over a treaty that directly affects millions of downstream Bangladeshis.
Dhaka’s position has consistently been that the Ganges dry-season waters should be shared fairly and predictably, based on the principles of equity and the rights of downstream communities.
Despite the differences, Humaiun Kobir said Bangladesh remained committed to dialogue with India.
“Despite thousands of issues between the two countries, the path to dialogue remains open,” he said.
“As a neighbour, there should be good relations with India.”
He said Bangladesh wanted to develop relations with India based on national interest, mutual respect and equality, adding that these principles would guide Dhaka’s relations with all countries.
Kobir also warned that Bangladesh would not accept the use of Indian territory for activities aimed at creating violence or instability in Bangladesh, referring to former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s presence in India.
He said Bangladesh expected India, just as Dhaka would, not to provide shelter or support to individuals involved in violence or terrorism against the other country.
