Bangladeshi ex-general threatens northeast India invasion if India attacks Pakistan

A retired Bangladeshi military officer and political figure close to Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus has sparked outrage after suggesting that Bangladesh should militarily occupy India’s northeastern states if New Delhi launches an attack on Pakistan. The controversial remark follows the recent terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which killed 26 people.

ALM Fazlur Rahman, a former head of Bangladesh Rifles (now Border Guard Bangladesh), wrote on Facebook that Bangladesh “will have to occupy seven states of northeast India” in the event of an India-Pakistan conflict. He also advocated for a joint military arrangement with China to support the effort.

Rahman’s remarks come at a time when diplomatic relations between India and Bangladesh are already strained. Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina recently sought asylum in India, and New Delhi has raised serious concerns over violence targeting Hindu minorities in Bangladesh. The inflammatory statements have further fueled tension.

Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus also previously made provocative remarks about India's northeast while in China. He described the seven sister states as “landlocked” and said Bangladesh could serve as their “guardian to the ocean”, viewing the region as a potential extension of China’s economy—an idea widely condemned in India.

India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, during a BIMSTEC meeting in April, reaffirmed India’s strategic focus on the northeast, calling it a “connectivity hub” and asserting India’s responsibility in regional cooperation. The Indian government has also terminated a trans-shipment facility for Bangladeshi exports through Indian ports, citing congestion and changing bilateral dynamics.