BJP Win Raises Hopes for Teesta Water Deal

A recent political shift in West Bengal has sparked renewed optimism in Bangladesh over the long-stalled Teesta water-sharing agreement with India.

According to comments made to Asian News International (ANI), Azizul Bari Helal, information secretary of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), welcomed the electoral success of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state. He expressed hope that under the leadership of Suvendu Adhikari, relations between West Bengal and Bangladesh could improve, paving the way for progress on the Teesta issue.

Helal alleged that former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her party, the All India Trinamool Congress, had been a major obstacle to the agreement. He suggested that a BJP-led state government could better coordinate with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s central government to move the deal forward.

The Teesta River remains one of the most contentious unresolved water-sharing issues between Bangladesh and India. While the Ganges Water Sharing Treaty 1996 regulates dry-season water distribution at the Farakka Barrage, Dhaka has long complained about insufficient water flow during critical periods, affecting agriculture and livelihoods downstream.

A proposed Teesta agreement during the 2011 visit of then Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh suggested Bangladesh would receive 37.5% of the water and India 42.5%. However, opposition from the West Bengal state government prevented its implementation, amid concerns over local agricultural impact.

Earlier, a 1983 interim deal had allocated 36% of the water to Bangladesh and 39% to India, leaving the remaining 25% to be determined later, but it was never fully enforced. Hopes were again raised during Modi’s 2015 visit to Dhaka, though no final resolution emerged.

India and Bangladesh share 54 rivers, but only two formal agreements have been concluded so far: the Ganges treaty and the Kushiyara River agreement. Negotiations over other rivers, including the Teesta and Feni, are still ongoing.

Helal noted that despite ideological differences between the BNP and BJP, both sides see common ground in advancing the Teesta Barrage project and strengthening bilateral ties. He added that the change in leadership in West Bengal could open a new window for addressing long-standing border and water-sharing challenges between Dhaka and New Delhi.