Modi’s visit to Bangladesh
proved to be fruitful
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Bangladesh proved to be a fruitful one. India
is the largest and strongest neighbour of Bangladesh which expects India to
play a momentous but friendly role for it, sans its big-brother identity. Our Prime Minister was quick to realize that
an overwhelming majority in Bangladesh greatly admires India’s political
stability and zeal for progress, refuting challenges handed down by its
one-time colonial masters.
Before visiting
Bangladesh, in order not to let this reasonably friendly neighbour turn into
another distraught regional detractor, Modi had stepped up his pace, and the
primary task for him was to get Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on board. Modi’s
team made Banerjee understand the geostrategic significance of Bangladesh and that she should not work against its interest.
Modi ensured the
safe passage of the land boundary settlement bill and managed to assemble a
clear consensus across party lines — a rarer than rare commodity in India — on
Bangladesh. That unanimity helped Modi put in place a road map to reduce the
trade gap, facilitate transit and trans-shipment, and finally to promise a
solution on river-water sharing. The
result was that, in Bangladesh, Modi is now being referred to as “a genuine
friend”.
All Muslim states
in the Indian subcontinent should emulate the Muslim countries like Malaysia
and Indonesia in South East Asia, where all the minorities are treated on par
with their majority Muslim brethren without discrimination. A high degree of
compassion and good neighbourliness are being followed as per Islamic
brotherhood, where all can live in peace and progress unitedly.
Our own PM has
done no favors to any particular religion or group and nor does he intend to.
He wants to treat everyone equally. It
was the Congress which had messed up India's foreign policy through inaction
and lack of ideas and imagination.
Bangladesh has
evolved as a moderate Muslim Country, very much like Malaysia and Indonesia and
very unlike Pakistan. There is a deep history and culture that binds Bengalis
in the East and West. The boundary merely creates the concept of a separate
Nation State but does not detract from the common bonds. India has shown
maturity through these agreements. The entire region will benefit. Mamta too
has for her own reasons seen it fit to support National interests.
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