Wiser after the Teesta water-sharing treaty fiasco, the Centre on Saturday sent foreign secretary Ranjan Mathai to hold talks with West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee to find an amicable solution to contentious issues.
After 30-minute meeting, both Ms Banerjee and Mr Mathai refused to divulge details. Mr Mathai insisted that it was a routine meeting and a courtesy visit. He said talks were “positive and useful”.
In reply to persistent queries on whether he held talks over Teesta water-sharing treaty, Mr Mathai said: “We discussed all issues relating to some of our neighbouring countries. The discussions were fruitful and useful.” In September, Ms Banerjee had refused to accompany Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Dhaka as a result of which the Teesta treaty could not be signed. Ms Banerjee had complained that she had not been consulted before the agreement was drafted. The matter was further aggravated when she recently shot off a letter to Dr Singh protesting against Bangladesh being given much more water than was specified in the Farakka Barrage water sharing treaty due to damaged sluice gates.