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India objected to the depiction of an incorrect map of the country during a seminar at the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) and reiterated the territorial integrity of India, that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral and inalienable part of India.
The objection was raised during a presentation by former Bangladesh High Commissioner to India, Ahmed Tariq Karim, at a seminar titled Rebuilding Trust, Renewing Regional Integration: Pathways for Revitalising SAARC" held at the BIISS auditorium on Monday. Pooja Kumari Jha, Second Secretary, at the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, immediately raised an objection, stating, "The map of India depicted is incorrect. Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India." Shortly following her intervention, the former High Commissioner acknowledged the objection and said that it had been noted. Bangladesh's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed attended the event as the chief guest. Meanwhile speaking at the seminar, Bangladesh's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed underlined the importance of deeper regional cooperation within South Asia and urged for bridging the gap between potential and performance. She listed key measures to revive the body and said, "The organisation needs stronger implementation capacity, greater financial strength, more effective specialised mechanisms and a practical cultural of follow-up." Significantly, Obaed mentioned that Bangladesh is mulling that after conversation with member countries of SAARC, it would coordinate closer cooperation between the partner countries for "convening of a senior officials meeting and the possibility of a special session of the Council of Ministers." "It is in the spirit that we are considering a caliberated set of confidence-building initiatives in the coming months, subject to consultation with the SAARC member states. They maybe include engagement with the Ambassadors and High Commissioners of SAARC countries based in Dhaka as well as consultations with SAARC Secretariat in Kathmandu regarding the convening of a senior officials meeting and the possibility of a special session of the Council of Ministers," Obaed said at the seminar. She added, "We may also consider wider diplomatic outreach of the highest diplomatic level." (ANI)
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