Discourse on The River Teesta’s Role in Indo-Bangla Relations: Anxiety and The Way Forward

BANGLADESH POLITICAL SCIENCE REVIEW

ABSTRACT

The River Teesta, a tributary of the Brahmaputra, is a point of discourse within Indo-Bangladesh relations. The dispute, which was supposed to be resolved in 2011, remains unresolved, due to disagreement on both sides. The political parties in Bangladesh have fostered a narrative, which persuaded the current Awami regime to attract China’s investment, which could serve as a reminder to India of the urgent need to resolve the River Teesta dispute. This study discusses how the discursive power fostered in Bangladesh may jeopardize the Indo-Bangla relations. By applying deductive logic based on document analysis, this study argues that India and Bangladesh should hasten to resolve this most vexing River Teesta-sharing issue, thus reducing an irritant at the bilateral level and boosting river water cooperation at a more general level.

Keywords: Discursive Power, River Teesta, India’s Neighborhood Policy, Transboundary River Water Cooperation

Notes on Contributor

* Professor – Centre for South Asian Studies, Pondicherry University.
** Postgraduate student, Department of Politics and International Studies, Pondicherry University.