Ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President J. P Nadda on August 7 said that the BJP and the oldest Bangladesh’s political party Bangladesh Awami League will work for the greatest interest of the region.

“BJP has a historic relation with the Awami League for a long time and we want to carry forward our relation by strengthening party level contacts in the days to come,” he said when the visiting  five member AL delegation held a meeting with the BJP president at his residence in New Delhi.

AL Presidium Member and Agriculture Minister Dr. Md. Abdur Razzak MP led the Bangladesh delegation while AL Joint-General Secretary and Information and Broadcasting Minister Dr. Hassan Mahmood MP, Party Organising Secretary Sujit Roy Nandi, Aroma Dutta MP and Prof. Marina Jahan MP were present.

During the meeting they discussed a wide range of issues including political stability in the region, Bangladesh’s economic development, curbing militancy and India-Bangladesh relations as well, according to meeting sources.

Nada said India has historic as well as emotional relations with Bangladesh from the very inception of the country (Bangladesh) in 1971 through the War of Independence. He said the relations between the two countries reached a new height during the tenure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina. In this connection, he mentioned that the long standing Bangladesh India Land Boundary and Maritime Disputes and crisis in the Indian North-Eastern states were solved during the tenure of the two premiers.

The BJP President also mentioned with gratitude that the crises in India’s North-Eastern states were solved due to the pro-active initiative of the present AL government led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Hailing the present economic development in Bangladesh, he said Bangladesh achieved a tremendous success in the country’s socio-economic sectors in the region, which is considered as an example for other countries. Delegation member and Information and Broadcasting Minister Hasan Mahmood told BSS that the meeting, which lasted for more than one and half hours, was held in a “very cordial atmosphere”.

We discussed so many issues with the BJP President, he said. Bangladesh AL and BJP have been enjoying a very good relation and we both are solving so many outstanding issues in party and even in government levels through discussion in the past, he added. He hoped that the relations will continue in the days to come.

Before, the Bangladesh delegation held a formal meeting with BJP at the BJP headquarters here. BJP General Secretary Vinod Twade and Bangladesh delegation chief Dr. Abdur Razzak led their respective delegation.

During the meeting, they also discussed a wide range of issues including how to strengthen the party level relations further with the exchange of party delegation level visits for the betterment of the parties as well as the countries.

Later, the Bangladesh Awami League held a formal meeting with the MEA Minister Dr. S Jaishankar and discussed various issues at Parliament House. Dr. Abdur Razzak led the Bangladesh delegation team from Awami League.

The author is Minister-Press, High Commission of Bangladesh in India