Maritime boundary verdict reflects will of India: BNP

Claiming that the maritime boundary verdict reflects India’s will, BNP on Thursday alleged that Bangladesh has lost around 6,000 square kilometres of sea areas with the judgement. The party also alleged that the verdict will help India establish its absolute dominance over the Bay of Bengal. Addressing a press conference at the BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office, BNP vice chairman and former water resources minister M Hafizuddin Ahmed also demanded the government come up with a transparent and elaborate explanation of the verdict. The press conference was arranged to give the party’s formal reaction to the verdict delivered by the International Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in the Netherlands on Monday. With the verdict, Bangladesh has gained some 19,467 square kilometers of maritime areas at the Bay of Bengal out of the disputed approximately 25,602 square kilometers with neighbouring India, according to a news agency.