Manmohan's Remark
Delhi happy over Dhaka's gesture
New Delhi has heaved a sigh of relief at Dhaka's decision on Sunday not to make any formal statement on Manmohan Singh's remarks after the Indian external affairs ministry had issued a clarification that the remarks should not be seen as “judgemental”.
Diplomatic sources said the Indian side was in confusion that Dhaka may react with the comment as well as the opposition parties in Bangladesh may launch street agitation, but they are quite happy with the good gesture from Bangladesh side.
They said the official announcement of Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's visit to Bangladesh on September 6-7 also came expeditiously following Dhaka's decision not to proceed with the remarks.
Sources said the high profile visit from India might be postponed if there was a serious reaction from Dhaka, but Bangladeshi leaders played a very responsible role so that the upcoming visits are not affected.
While Indian External Affairs Minister SM Krishna, who will pay a 3-day official visit from July 7, fears that the Bangladeshi leaders would raise the issue of the Indian PM's recent remarks “about 25 per cent of Bangladeshis being anti-Indian” (which were later erased from Indian government's website), the two countries are resolved not to allow the incident to cast a shadow either on his visit or on bilateral ties at a time when they are moving towards a substantive phase, albeit not at the desired pace.
The MEA clarification and Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Mirajul Qayes' statement in Dhaka on Sunday indicate the desire of the two countries to leave the developments of the last few days behind and move on to strengthen such a crucial bilateral relationship.
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