BJP to raise land swap deal with Bangladesh in Parliament

BOROIBARI: The BJP will raise the issue of the recent land swap deal with Bangladesh in Parliament as the UPA government went ahead with such an important treaty sans taking the opposition into confidence.

"Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did not discuss the issue with the opposition and the whole deal reflects the irresponsible behaviour of the ruling Congress," BJP spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy told reporters today while leading a six-member party delegation to Boroibari area near Assam's Dhubri district along the Indo-Bangladesh border.

The ruling Congress in Assam also should have discussed the matter with the Opposition and other organisations but the whole deal was carried out in a clandestine manner, he alleged.

Since Independence, the area has been neglected and even after signing the Indira-Mujib Agreement of 1974, no steps were taken the resolve the issue or develop the area, he claimed.

Rudy said that in 1986, it was decided to carry out single line fencing while in 1989, it was agreed to implement triple line fencing along the border but on both occasions, Boroibari was left out.

"This clearly reflects the Congress government's conspiracy to hand over land to Bangladesh," he added.

The BJP cannot ignore this issue of national importance and the matter will be raised in the next session of Parliament, the BJP leader said.

Rudy was accompanied by party National Secretary Murlidhar Rao and Vice President Bijoya Chakraborty, who is also the Gauhati MP in the Lok Sabha.