"India and Kuwait have a 250-year-old partnership" Kuwait Heritage Society's president highlights exhibition 'Rihla-e-Dosti'

India Gazette

27-05-2025

Kuwait city [Kuwait], May 27 (ANI): An exhibition, titled 'Rihla-e-dosti' celebrating 'over 250 years of friendship' between the regions of India and Kuwait has been put up in in the middle eastern country, with the all-party delegation to present India's stand against terror visiting the exhitibition too. Kuwait Heritage Society President Fahad Ghazi Alabduljaleel highlighted that the idea of the exhibition was proposed during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the country.
The delegation, led by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Baijayant Panda visited the 'Rihla-e-Dosti' exhibition too, put up in the National Library of Kuwait.
'I met PM Modi a couple of months ago here in Kuwait, and I discussed an exhibition reflecting the great relationship between Kuwait and our great friend India. This relation, which was started in 1775, so it's like India and Kuwait have a 250-year-old partnership. This exhibition is organised by NCCAL (National Council for Culture, Arts and Literature), in cooperation with the Indian Embassy in Kuwait,' the Heritage society's president told ANI.
Highlighting how a lot of valuable items and documents are in the exhibition, he underlined how historically many Kuwaitis also used to live in Indian harbours in Calicut and Kerala.
'A lot of valuable items, documents reflecting the old relationship between India and Kuwait from 1775, so we covered all the Indian harbours, because at that time many Kuwaitis lived in different Indian harbours, like in Calicut and Kerala. Our relation with India add a lot of value for our economy in Kuwait. This exhibition is very valuable, as I mentioned, many people visited this exhibition,' he said.
Panel discussions were held on the partnership between the two regions, with historians detailing the maritime history, and also the grandchildren of Kuwaitis who lived in India many years ago telling their family stories too.
'Also we organised a lot of panel discussions, invited 3 of the Kuwaiti, to share their experiences of their grandfathers in India. As well as there were two specialists, and historians. We talked about Indian words in the Kuwaiti language, there was a significant effect on our languages. We also invited one historian to talk about the maritime history between Kuwait and India,' Alabduljaleel said.
Earlier today, BJP's Baijayant Panda said that a joint working group set up between India and Kuwait to work against terrorism was getting great support.
He further stated that Pakistan had misused the aid money they received from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), United States and the Gulf countries.
'A joint working group has also been set up between Kuwait and India to work against terrorism. The message we are carrying is getting great resonance here and there is tremendous support. We are very encouraged. Pakistan has misused the aid money it has received from the IMF, US, and Gulf countries. Instead of using the money on development, for which they borrowed huge sums, they used it to foster terrorism...' Panda told ANI.
The delegation also addressed a group of Indian diaspora living in Kuwait.
Panda highlighted India's united stand against terrorism and the importance of clearly sharing the country's message with the world.
The all-party delegation, led by Baijayant Jay Panda, includes BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, BJP MP Phangnon Konyak, BJP MP Rekha Sharma, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) MP Asaduddin Owaisi, BJP MP Satnam Singh Sandhu, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and former Indian diplomat Harsh Shringla. (ANI)