Indian, Bangladesh discuss issues to advance bilateral cooperation

During the meeting, Pranay Verma conveyed the greetings of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to Hasan Mahmud. Notably, Hasan Mahmud has been appointed as Bangladesh's new Foreign Minister, succeeding Abdul Momen.

In the previous term, Hasan Mahmud was given the responsibilities of Bangalesh's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

In a post shared on X, the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh stated, "HC Pranay Verma paid a courtesy call on the new FM of Bangladesh H.E Hasan Mahmud on 15 Jan 2024 & conveyed greetings on behalf of India's EAM. They discussed wide ranging issues to advance India-Bangladesh bilateral cooperation in the new term of the Bangladesh Govt."

On January 8, India's High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Pranay Verma, called on Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. During the meeting, he conveyed the warm greetings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and India to Sheikh Hasina on her election victory.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated Sheikh Hasina for securing victory in the elections. Underscoring that India is committed to further strengthening the partnership with Bangladesh, PM Modi said, "We are committed to further strengthening our enduring and people-centric partnership with Bangladesh."

In a post shared on X, PM Modi stated, "Spoke to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and congratulated her on her victory for a historic fourth consecutive term in the Parliamentary elections. I also congratulate the people of Bangladesh for the successful conduct of the elections. We are committed to further strengthening our enduring and people-centric partnership with Bangladesh."

Sheikh Hasina registered a historic victory, clinching a fourth consecutive term as the Bangladesh Prime Minister. Her party, the Awami League secured 223 seats to form the government in the elections held on January 7.

She received 249,962 votes, while her nearest rival, Md Atiqur Rahman, got 6,999 votes. Meanwhile, another candidate, Mahabur Mollah, received 425 votes. Sheikh Hasina has won the fifth term, which is also her fourth consecutive term, Dhaka Tribune reported.

Meanwhile, Jatiya Party (JaPa-Ershad), received 11 seats, Bangladesh Kallyan party won in one constituency while independent candidates secured victory in 62 seats.

Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal and Workers Party of Bangladesh won one seat each, according to the report.The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Jamaat-e-Islami and like-minded parties observed a strike across the country as they boycotted the elections. (ANI)