In an attempt to protect its territorial sovereignty, India is gearing up to resolve border disputes with neighbouring countries. The Manmohan Singh administration believes it is urgent to resolve border disputes with China in the north, Pakistan in the west and Bangladesh in the east. As far as the eastern neighbour is concerned, the Indian government has decided to implement the Indo-Bangla land boundary agreement properly. According to sources close to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, the government will bring a Constitutional Amendment Bill in the Parliament during the forthcoming Monsoon Session to ratify the Indira-Mujib pact. In 1974, the then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Mujibur Rahman signed the bilateral land boundary agreement. Commenting on the issue, a senior External Affairs Ministry official on Saturday said that India would ratify the Indira-Mujib pact for demarcation of boundaries and for exchange of 161 adversely-held enclaves through the Constitutional Amendment Bill. According to him, around 50,000 people are currently living in these enclaves. Although the Bangladeshi Parliament has already approved the land boundary deal, India has taken time to introduce the Constitutional Amendment Bill in the Parliament as the implementation of the pact involves territory swap. The Congress Party-led United Progressive Alliance government in New Delhi is also not sure whether it will win the support of the two-third majority in the Parliament necessary for the approval of land boundary accord with Bangladesh. New Delhi has already informed Dhaka about its decision during the recently concluded Home Secretary-level talks between the two countries in the Indian capital. Meanwhile, top officials of the two neighbours discussed a number of important bilateral and regional issues, including the modalities for implementation of the extradition treaty, during the meeting. On the basis of the treaty signed by New Delhi and Dhaka earlier this year, the Sheikh Hasina administration in Bangladesh has agreed to deport Anup Chetia to India. Chetia, the General Secretary of United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) – a separatist group from north-eastern part of India, is currently lodged in a Bangladeshi prison. After attending the meeting, Bangladeshi High Commissioner to New Delhi Tariq A Karim told the Indian media: “We are taking forward the dialogue from where we left off. Constant co-operation between India and Bangladesh is going on.” Commenting on Chetia’s deportation, he stressed: “The process is on. When it will happen, it will happen”. During their meeting, the Indian officials also submitted a list of 96 “most wanted” criminals to their Bangladeshi counterparts, demanding their deportation. According to the Indian officials, the Interpol has issued Red Corner notices against all of these 96 Indian criminals. inserbia.info/news/2013/07/indian-parliament-to-ratify-1974-pact-with-bangladesh/
Posted on: Sat, 20 Jul 2013 18:47:37 +0000
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