Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Kumar Verma on Tuesday said there is a great degree of commitment from the leaders of the two countries - Bangladesh and India - to take the relations to newer heights. "India attaches top priority to its relations with Bangladesh. For us it is neighbourhood first; but in the neighbourhood too, it is Bangladesh first," he said. The High Commissioner said the bilateral relationship today is truly multifaceted and complementing each other’s national development. "Our cooperation covers not only traditional areas like trade, commerce, development partnership, security and border management but also newer areas such as clean energy, IT, space and so on," he said. The Indian High Commissioner was speaking at a reception cum cultural evening marking the "Maitri Diwas 2022" held at Kurmitola Golf Club. Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Huq spoke as the chief guest. The High Commissioner said the Liberation of Bangladesh changed the political map of South-Asia. "But it also changed our ideological map: your freedom proved beyond doubt that the common bonds of culture, civilization, and language are what fundamentally connect people closer to each other than anything else." He also said, "Your Liberation struggle also brought out the inevitability of the victory of truth and justice over brutality and oppression." The High Commissioner said the friendship between the two countries is rooted in the shared sacrifices of the Liberation War and guided by the values, ideals and the visions espoused by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. "With our soldiers having shed blood together with the Muktijoddhas, the bonds we share are eternal and will always stand the test of time," he said. India had stood by the people of Bangladesh in 1971 and will stand ready to walk together with them in future as well, on the road to greater prosperity and success, said the Indian envoy. Read more: Bangladesh always gets highest priority from India: High Commissioner tells PM "We have made important achievements in our partnership, especially in the last decade. We remain committed to do more to build on the foundation of our friendship and our shared history," Verma said. "As we do so, we must also ensure that our future generations imbibe our shared history and preserve the legacy of 1971 to make our partnership irreversible," he added. Doing so would be a truly fitting tribute to the millions of martyrs who gave all that they had for the future of this country, he said.

Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram Kumar Doraiswami on Saturday hoped that the traditional spirit of happiness, friendship, peace and harmony will only grow in a Bangladesh that remains true to the remarkable founding vision and values of its Liberation War. “It is with the hope that in the years ahead, Indian and Bangladeshi people will continue to fully celebrate every festival that makes our subcontinent the world’s most diverse region,” he said. The High Commissioner made the remarks at the Janmashtami festival in Dhakeshwari temple organized by Mahanagar Sarbojoneen Puja Committee. LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Md Tazul Islam spoke at the event as the chief guest. Doraiswami said there can be no progress for either one of them individually and they need each other’s cooperation to ensure a “peaceful, stable, secure” neighbourhood, and an interconnected sub-region. “We in India are committed to this goal, for the equal progress of all of our countries.  This is why we are invested in creating a broad based, people-centric development partnership aimed at all people and communities,” he said. Referring to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s repeated remarks “Dharmo Jar Jar - Utsob Sabar,” the high commissioner said this is the spirit that inspired the Liberation War of 1971 and the magnificent, inclusive and progressive 1972 Constitution of Bangladesh. He said all Indian governments have given highest priority to this friendship. “We will always hope that this is reciprocated by all groups and parties here as well.” Regardless of that, the envoy said, all of his predecessors have worked single-mindedly to seek friendship with the people of Bangladesh, throughout its history, and with all shades of Bangladeshi opinion. The High Commissioner said the bond between India and Bangladesh was indeed forged in unique circumstances of tragedy, sacrifice and great humanitarian distress, and shared struggle in the face of a brutal and genocidal oppressor. Read: Momen comments: AL expects PM to formally look into it “But the bond that has sustained us since 1971 builds upon that foundation and goes much further. Today, we are both independent, equal, sovereign nations with millennia-old bonds of common history, language, culture and heritage, as well as shared values of harmonious co-existence, and respect for diversity and inclusion,” he said. Doraiswami mentioned that “Ours are nations that are inspired by truly pluralist values. We both understand that national progress can only be achieved through fairness, compassion and through equal opportunity for all.” He said the Bangladesh-India partnership is based on mutual respect and shared prosperity of people. Every effort on both sides to deepen the partnership is based solely on the understanding that it will benefit the people of both countries, Doraiswami said. As a nation that shares every possible commonality, plus nearly 4100 kms of border, India is, was and will always be a friend to all of Bangladesh, he said. “The future of our friendship is with the people first and foremost. And yes, it is based on the values and goals that you set for yourself in the first years of your independence,” Doraiswami said.