New Delhi, July 3 (ANI): Bangladesh has reportedly summoned the Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka today to protest the remark made by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh during his meeting with five editors of different print publications in New Delhi this week.
The Prime Minister's statement during this week's interaction with newspaper editors in New Delhi that "at least 25 percent of the population of Bangladesh swear by the Jamaat-e-Islami and they are very anti-Indian" had sparked controversy.
The Jamaat-e-Islami is Bangladesh's largest Islamist party and was part of the four-party Islamist-allied government between 2001 and 2006.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vishnu Prakash on Saturday said Dr. Singh and the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government have the greatest affection for the people of Bangladesh and hold the bilateral relations to be of the highest importance.
Vishnu Prakash further said that the remarks were by no means intended to be judgemental.
"India recognizes the stability of the democratically elected government and is committed to the non-interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states. In recent years, ties between India and Bangladesh have seen exceptional heights with close cooperation in a wide range of areas," Prakash said.
"The focus on both sides has been development cooperation, poverty alleviation, capacity building and education. We are fully committed to our bilateral relationship with the people and the Government of Bangladesh," he added.
The Prime Minister today met editors T N Ninan (Chairman, Business Standard), Raj Chengappa (editor-in-chief, Tribune), Kumar Ketkar (Editor, Divya Marathi), Alok Mehta (editor, Nai Dunia) and M K Razdan (editor-in-chief and CEO, Press Trust of India) on June 29. (ANI)
|
|
Comments:
