India and Bangladesh have a very comprehensive partnership that spans across sectors, says MEA
The relationship between India and Bangladesh is very strong and vibrant, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said amid the ongoing campaign by the main Bangladeshi opposition party to boycott Indian products. 
 
Describing the India-Bangladesh partnership as "very comprehensive," MEA Official Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Thursday (April 4, 2024) said that this covers sectors ranging from trade and economy to development. 
 
"I would like to say that India-Bangladesh relations are very strong and deep," he said in response to a question at the weekly media briefing in New Delhi.
 
According to the MEA Official Spokesperson, India and Bangladesh have a very comprehensive partnership that spans across sectors, from economy to trade to investment to development cooperation, connectivity, people to people. 
 
"You name any human endeavour; it is part and parcel of, almost part and parcel of India-Bangladesh relations. That is how vibrant this partnership is and it will continue to be so," he pointed out.
 
The comments come in the backdrop of a campaign against India launched by Bangladesh's principal opposition party. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) recently started a trend called ‘#BoycottIndia’, calling for a boycott of Indian products in Bangladesh.
 
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, on the other hand, has come out strongly against this campaign. “When will BNP leaders burn their wives’ Indian saris in front of their party office? Only then will it be proven that they are truly committed to boycotting Indian products,” a report in the Dhaka Tribune quoted her as saying on March 27, 2024.
 
India and Bangladesh have a robust bilateral relationship which is characterized by a strong bond of cooperation and mutual understanding.  Over the years, the two countries have collaborated on various fronts, such as connectivity, trade, energy, border security, and water sharing, to foster regional stability and promote shared prosperity. 
 
This partnership was on display when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina jointly inaugurated three India-assisted development projects on November 1, 2023, via video conferencing. The three projects were Akhaura - Agartala Cross-Border Rail Link; Khulna - Mongla Port Rail Line; and Unit – II of the Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant.
 
More recently, Bangladesh Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, who was in India on his first official visit from February 7-9, 2024, held a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and discussed steps to "forge ahead" in their “vibrant and people-centric partnership.”