Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday in parliament said her government has taken steps to resolve bilateral problems with India quickly in line with the recent joint communiqué and deals signed between the two countries.
“Though there is no timeframe to implement the agreements and joint communiqué, our efforts are to implement those as soon as possible to deal with the bilateral problems for welfare of the people,” she said while replying to lawmakers' queries.
Hasina, also leader of the House, bitterly criticised the opposition parties for propagating false information about the agreements with India during her recent visit and asked BNP to disclose the 'secret agreements' if any.
“There is no question of signing any secret deal with India. I did not seal any secret deal. If the opposition knows about any secret deal, then why they are not disclosing it before the people,” she said.
The premier claimed that Opposition Leader Khaleda Zia is misleading people by giving false information in the name of secret deal.
“There was nothing secret. Before visiting India, the cabinet discussed the deals we signed with India and the joint communiqué we declared,” she said adding, “I made the visit upholding country's independence, sovereignty and dignity and honour of people.”
About implementation of the agreements, she said works are on to extend electricity connection to Angorpota and Dahogram, two Bangladeshi enclaves.
She said the meeting of the joint rivers commission would also be held soon to resolve water sharing issues of the common rivers including the Teesta.
Criticising Khaleda Zia's role during 1991 to 1996, Hasina said she (Khaleda) forgot to raise water sharing issue during her visit to India as the then prime minister.
“But I didn't forget to raise the issues of people's sufferings,” she added.
In reply to a scripted query of Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, the premier informed the House in detail about the outcome of her recent visit to India.
She said different bilateral issues, including water resources and joint river management, communications system, power supply, security, border problems, commerce, regional cooperation, demarcation of maritime boundary and international cooperation, were discussed during her visit to India.