Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Thursday praised Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
whom he described as a "true friend of India".
"The Bangladesh regime under Sheikh Hasina has been
supportive to our issues including that of infiltration and
insurgency", Gogoi told reporters here.
"On the insurgency front, the Bangla government has
been cooperative and that is why you are seeing the result",
the chief minister said in an obvious reference to the handing
over of top ULFA leaders including chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa
and deputy commander-in-chief Raju Baruah who were detained in
that country. They later sat with the Centre for formal talks.
Referring to strident criticisms from the opposition
Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), BJP and the influential student
body, the All Assam Students Union (AASU), Gogoi said they
"have not understood the matter".
On the land deal signed during the recent visit of
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to Bangladesh, the chief
minister claimed the state in fact, stood to gain as much as
1240 acres of land which was under possession of that country.
"The country's opposition including former prime
minister Begum Khaleda Zia, have criticised Hasina for giving
away land to us and ironically the parties (AGP, BJP and AASU)
are charging me with doing vice versa. Are they supporting
Khaleda Zia?" he remarked.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, September 22, 2011, 21:41