Indian Parliament likely to ratify LBA before Modi’s Bangladesh visit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is preparing to visit Bangladesh in the new year and the Indian Parliament is getting ready to ratify the Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) before that, officials say.

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee appears to have relented after having fiercely opposed the ratification of the protocol signed between the two countries in 2011.

In Sept 13, 2013, the UPA government headed by Manmohan Singh had tried to table a Bill for the ratification of the agreement but the Trinamool Congress had vehemently opposed it.

The Trinamool Congress appears to have changed its stance by agreeing on Dec 1 to a standing committee's recommendation that the Bill be passed. Trianmool Congress MP Saugata Roy is a member of the panel and did not oppose the recommendation.

Renuka Sinha, Trinamool MP from Cooch Behar, says Banerjee "could feel the pain of the people living in Indian enclaves in Bangladesh which led to the clearance on the agreement”.

That means the local Trinamul unit was always in favour of the deal.

Sinha says Banerjee had agreed keeping in mind the hardship of the people living in the enclaves, though West Bengal will lose some territory.

Banerjee, now touring the northern districts of West Bengal, addressed a rally in Cooch Behar's Nayarhat, where a large number of people from the surrounding Indian enclaves applauded her when she said it was up to the local people to accept the deal.

Banerjee's government has, however, told the Centre that it will have to bear the entire expenses involved in rehabilitation of those who will lose their land and livelihood when the deal is implemented.