No Teesta deal with Bangladesh without Mamata: Govt

Banerjee today refused to say anything on her opting out of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s trip to Bangladesh.

“I have nothing to say,” an official told reporters on behalf of the chief minister.

Earlier,having kept the Centre on tenterhooks in the run-up to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s two-day trip to Bangladesh from September 6,Banerjee threw a fresh spanner in the works just 48 hours before he leaves. Sources close to her declared that she would not be going with the PM,though in an indication that it may be little more than pressure tactic from the mercurial Mamata,there was no official word from the Chief Minister’s Office till late Sunday evening.

Insiders said she was unhappy with the final draft of the Teesta river water agreement,and that her decision not to go had been conveyed to the PMO through “proper channels”. Mamata would have been among the CMs of four states — the others being Assam,Tripura,Mizoram — bordering Bangladesh accompanying the PM on the trip.

Meanwhile,Bangladesh has expressed disappointment over the last-minute decision by the West Bengal CM to drop out of Singh’s upcoming visit to the country.

“We will be disappointed if she does not come as she is a great friend of Bangladesh and she has a great following in this country and is a close friend of our Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina,” Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s foreign affairs adviser Gawher Rizvi said.

But he said Bangladesh was sure that she would visit the country very soon and a very warm welcome awaits her.

The issue that has prompted her to scrap her planned visit is an internal matter of India,he said.

“But we know that even if she is unable to come tomorrow,she will visit Bangladesh very soon and a very warm welcome awaits when she arrives,” Rizvi said.

Mamata miffed: Cong says teething troubles will be resolved

New Delhi: Congress today hoped that “teething issues if at all” will be resolved though mutual discussion after Mamata Banerjee opted out of Prime Minister’s visit to Dhaka,apparently upset with a proposed accord to be signed with Bangaldesh on Teesta water sharing.

Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari,however,refused to go into the reasons for Banerjee’s decision saying,“I am not privy to the consultations and discussions that have taken place in this particular manner.”

He said that since the Foreign Secretary has already reacted to it,he does not think there is any need for the party to react and amplify what the government has said.

“If at all there are some teething issues,I am sure they will be resolved though mutual dialogue or discussion,” he said,adding that he believes that an appropriate structure does exist for consultations in a federal structure over such issues.

“The right people to react to it are those in government who are dealing with the issue… Off the cuff reaction will be inappropriate,” he said.

During the visit that begins from tommorrow,the two sides are expected to sign important treaties related to sharing of Teesta water and exchange of enclaves occupied by people located on their borders.

A senior party leader speaking on the condition of anonymity admitted that there are concerns on some issues expressed by different sections and these need to be addressed.