Dhaka:A former Bangladesh army officer and close aide of Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus has suggested that Dhaka should collaborate with China to occupy India’s northeastern states if it attacks Pakistan in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.
Yunus’ interim government on Friday distanced itself from the remarks made by Major General (Retd) ALM Fazlur Rahman on his social media account.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Rahman wrote in Bengali, “If India attacks Pakistan, Bangladesh should occupy the seven states of Northeastern India.” “I think it is necessary to start discussions with China on a joint military arrangement in this regard,” he added.
Rahman was appointed by the Yunus-led interim government in December 2024 as the chairman of the National Independent Commission assigned to investigate the killings in the Bangladesh Rifles revolt of 2009.
Distancing itself from the former army officer’s remarks, Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a media release on Friday said, “The comments do not reflect the position or policies of the government of Bangladesh, and as such, the government neither endorses nor supports such rhetoric in any form or manner.” The government urged all concerned to refrain from associating the state with the personal views expressed by Rahman, the Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported.
Bangladesh remains firmly committed to the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, mutual respect, and the peaceful coexistence of all nations, the ministry said.
Earlier in March, Chief Adviser Yunus, during his visit to China, had remarked that India’s seven northeastern states, which share a nearly 1,600-km border with Bangladesh, are landlocked and have no way to reach the ocean except through his country.
In his address at a business event in China, Yunus said Dhaka was the “only guardian” of the Indian Ocean in the region, as he invited Beijing to send goods through Bangladesh across the world.
The comments did not go down well in New Delhi. It also drew sharp reactions from political leaders in India across party lines.
Days after Yunus’ controversial remarks, India in April withdrew the transhipment facility it had granted to Bangladesh for exporting goods to the Middle East, Europe and various other countries except Nepal and Bhutan.
Bangladesh has been using several Indian ports and airports for its exports to West Asia, Europe, and many other countries. India has exempted Bangladeshi exports to Nepal and Bhutan, as such trade facilitation is mandatory for landlocked countries under the framework of provisions of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
India-Bangladesh relation has nosedived after Yunus failed to contain attacks on minorities, especially Hindus, in that country after the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government in August last year.