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Bangladesh's ruling party congratulated the BJP on its Bengal victory, praising Suvendu Adhikari's leadership. It said the result could improve ties and revive the Teesta agreement, blaming the Mamata Banerjee government for delays and expressing hope the project would now move forward under BJP rule.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s party BNP congratulates BJP, expresses optimism over stalled Teesta pact
New Delhi,UPDATED: May 6, 2026 07:26 IST
The ruling Bangladesh ist Party (BNP) slammed Mamata Banerjee for stalling the Teesta water-sharing agreement between the two countries, while extending congratulations to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on its win in Bengal, describing the result as one that could help maintain and strengthen ties between the state and Bangladesh.
Speaking to news agency ANI, BNP Information Secretary Azizul Baree Helal praised the BJP's performance under Suvendu Adhikari and said the relationship would continue in a positive way.
Helal also linked the result to hopes of movement on the long-pending Teesta water-sharing issue. He said the previous Trinamool Congress government under Mamata Banerjee had stood in the way of the Teesta Barrage agreement, adding that a BJP government led by Adhikari in West Bengal could now work in step with the Narendra Modi government on a deal long sought by Bangladesh.
According to Helal, the BJP’s victory under Adhikari’s leadership could further strengthen relations with West Bengal, which shares the longest border with Bangladesh among Indian states. He said the change in power had opened up the possibility of improving ties between Bangladesh and West Bengal, presenting it as a positive development in the context of long-standing cross-border issues involving Dhaka and Kolkata.
On the Teesta issue, Helal said the earlier administration in West Bengal had been the main obstacle to progress. He claimed the Teesta Barrage agreement was strongly supported by both the Bangladesh government and the Narendra Modi government, and expressed the view that Adhikari’s leadership would help move the project forward now that the BJP has replaced the Trinamool Congress in power.
"Actually, previously we saw that Mamata Banerjee was actually the impediment to establishing the Teesta Barrage. Now, in my opinion, since the BJP won the election under Suvendu's leadership, the Teesta Barrage agreement--which was very much desired by the Bangladesh government and the Modi government--will be helped by Suvendu. I think the Teesta Barrage project will be implemented under the BJP government now that they have seized power instead of the Trinamool Congress," Azizul Baree Helal told ANI.
The Teesta dispute remains one of the unresolved issues in water-sharing between India and Bangladesh. The 1996 Ganga Water Treaty governs the sharing of water during the dry season at the Farakka Barrage, but Bangladesh has said that not enough water is released by India in lean months, affecting farming and livelihoods downstream. Concerns over climate change have also added to the dispute over declining water availability.
Now, with the 1996 treaty expiring later this year, Bangladesh has been seeking what it calls a fair share of Teesta waters, but the agreement has remained pending because West Bengal has opposed it on the ground of its own water requirements. During Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Bangladesh in 2011, a proposal was made under which Bangladesh would receive 37.5 per cent of Teesta waters and India 42.5 per cent. That plan did not go through after opposition from the West Bengal government, which said it would hurt the state's agricultural interests.
An ad hoc agreement on Teesta waters had earlier been reached in 1983, under which Bangladesh was to get 36 per cent of the flow and India 39 per cent, with the remaining 25 per cent left to be decided later. That arrangement, however, was never fully implemented. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Dhaka in 2015 had also raised expectations that the earlier differences could be addressed through a fair and equitable water-sharing pact.
India and Bangladesh share 54 rivers, but only two treaties have so far been signed, the Ganga Waters Treaty and the Kushiyara River Treaty. Other rivers, including the Teesta and the Feni, are still under negotiation. Helal said that despite the ideological differences between the BNP and the BJP, the two sides were united on certain issues, including the Teesta Barrage and the broader relationship between Bangladesh and India, and he said the new government in West Bengal could help accelerate that relationship further.
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Published By:
Sayan Ganguly
Published On:
May 6, 2026 07:26 IST
