Meghalaya CM not to be part of Modi's trip to Bangladesh

Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma is not part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's entourage to Bangladesh during his two-day visit beginning June 6.

Sangma had accompanied the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh when he had visited Bangladesh in September 2011 when an enabling legislation to ratify the land boundary agreement was signed by the two countries.

"No, I did not get any invite. It is the prerogative of the Prime Minister whom to invite and whom to not (to be part of PM's delegation," he said here today.

Meghalaya shares a 443km boundary with Bangladesh. There are two border 'haats' (markets) in Meghalaya sector of Indo-Bangla border where people of the two countries meet for trading agricultural, horticultural and poultry products every week.

When former Prime Minister Singh had visited Dhaka, besides Sangma, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and Mizoram Chief Minister Lalthanhawla were part of the entourage.

This time, while Sangma, Sarkar and Lalthanhawla were reportedly not invited, there was an invite to Gogoi which he is said to have turned down, sources said.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who had refused to be part of Singh's delegation in 2011, will be part of Modi's entourage this time.

During Modi's visit, instruments of exchange will be signed for operationalising LBA, paving the way for demarcating the remaining portion of the border as well as exchanging of over 161 enclaves adversely held by two countries.

Bangladesh will receive 111 enclaves (17,160 acres) from India's possession and India will receive 51 enclaves (7,110 acres) from Bangladesh. Enclaves are tiny landlocked territories that each country has within the borders of the other nation.