Hasina not to attend Kolkata convocation
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who was invited to the annual convocation of Calcutta University (CU) as chief guest, will not be attending due to "preoccupations" at home, a highly placed source at the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) told The Daily Star yesterday. The CU authorities were conveyed the message, the source said. According to diplomatic sources, Hasina's "refusal" to visit Kolkaka is apparently because of Dhaka's cold relations with the West Bengal's government led by Mamata Banerjee, who blocked the signing of the Teesta Water Sharing Treaty and opposed implementation of other agreements between Bangladesh and India. Hasina visited Tripura on January 11-12 to attend the 9th convocation of Tripura University where Indian Vice-President Hamid Ansari conferred an honorary doctorate on her. “The Bangladesh PM visited Tripura last month (January) and has refused to come to our state now. This is a clear indication how the government has failed to keep a cordial relationship with Bangladesh”, Indian Express reported quoting a senior CPM leader. CU had invited Hasina a few months ago to deliver the convocation address. The Bangladesh prime minister, who was to deliver the convocation speech as chief guest, would be giving the programme a miss, West Bengal Governor MK Narayanan, who is also the chancellor of CU, said in Kolkata on Thursday. “I do not think she is coming”, Narayanan told journalists, The Asian Age reported. The CU authorities had originally planned to hold the convocation in January 2012 and had accordingly written to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. “However, despite primary acceptance of the invite, the PMO of Bangladesh did not get in touch with the varsity officials with further details”, The Asian Age said. The Indian newspapers, including the Indian Express and The Asian Age, quoting experts in political circles said Hasina might have cancelled her visit, as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee backed out of the Indo-Bangla Teesta Water Treaty. She (Mamata) also refused to visit Dhaka with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who paid an official visit to Bangladesh on September 6-7, 2011. Even Mamata is now opposing implementation of the Land Boundary Agreement, under which Bangladesh and India are to exchanges the enclaves and plots of land adversely possessed, and demarcation of 6.5-kilometre stretch of the border.
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