ISAS Insights No. 157 – 5 March 2012 469A Bukit Timah Road #07-01, Tower Block, Singapore 259770 Tel: 6516 6179 / 6516 4239 Fax: 6776 7505 / 6314 5447 Email:
[email protected] Website: www.isas.nus.edu.sg Bangladesh and Paschim Banga1: ‘Why this Kolaveri Di?’ Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury2 Abstract Over the past few years Bangladesh and India have been painstakingly developing their bilateral relations. There was indeed a possibility that thereby a model of good neighbourliness could be created worthy of emulation in the rest of South Asia. Suddenly the appearance in the scene of the new Chief Minister of the State of West Bengal in the Indian Union appears to have thrown a spanner in the works. All developments in the area seem to be hostage to her perception of the self-interest of her State, vis-à-vis both New Delhi and Dhaka. As a result, the burgeoning relationship between Bangladesh and India – already characterised by a complex mix of reason and passion and subject to the vicissitudes of domestic politics in both countries – stands threatened. Much hard work and deep innovative thinking by both sides will be needed to successfully overcome the newly created impediments. Introduction It is rare in South Asia to have two governments entertain such friendly disposition towards each other as those of India and Bangladesh today. Of late, however, this chumminess is 1 The author refers to the Indian state of West Bengal. 2 Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury is Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS), an autonomous institute at the National University of Singapore (NUS).