MPs express concern over rising Chinese influence in Dhaka

Concerns over rising Chinese influence on neighbouring Bangladesh, which is currently under an interim regime, were raised by several members during a meeting of the Parliamentary panel on External Affairs on Friday, with some of them seeking revival of the SAARC grouping, to counter the threat from Beijing on Dhaka.

According to sources, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, which is headed by Congress Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor, is learnt to have witnessed concerns over China’s growing influence on Bangladesh, with many of them seeking the Centre’s attention on reviving SAARC, a move, which they argued, might help mitigate the rising Chinese interference on the neighbouring nation.

The Ganges Water Sharing Treaty between India and Bangladesh, which is expiring in December 2026, also came up for deliberations during the meeting, with sources informing that members sought a greater say for India in terms of using Ganga waters when the pact comes up for renewal in 2026.

The treaty was signed in December 1996 when Sheikh Hasina had begun her first tenure as Bangladesh’s Prime Minister, while HD Deve Gowda was the Indian Prime Minister.

The 30-year agreement is set to expire on December 12, 2026, and the renewal will require mutual agreement between the two countries.

The agreement had established a framework for distributing Ganga’s flow at the Farakka Barrage in West Bengal during the critical dry period from January 1 to May 31 annually.

The committee, which discussed the issue of the future of India-Bangladesh relationship, heard views of several experts and academics on the matter. These included former National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon, former diplomat Riva Ganguly Das, retired Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain and academic Amitabh Mattoo.

“Four first-class experts gave us great insights... We didn’t discuss (the issue of Bangladeshis living in India), but were told about a figure that the number of Bangladeshis coming to our country has lessened now,” Tharoor told reporters after the meeting.