• By Soumyaroop Mukherjee
  • Fri, 05 Sep 2025 02:34 PM (IST)
  • Source:JND
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Gunther Fehlinger’s X Account Banned: The Government of India has suspended the official handle of Austrian Economist Gunther Fehlinger, after a controversial post of his has drawn criticism on the internet. In the post on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle, a redrawn map of India was posted, which showed Indian territories of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Punjab marked as ‘Khalistan’.gunther

The territories of Jammu and Kashmir were shown as part of Pakistan. The social media post triggered intense backlash on the social media. The post also called for ‘dismantling of India into ExIndia’ stating that Narendra Modi is ‘Russia’s Man’ and friends are needed for ‘Khalistan.’

Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi urged the Ministry of External Affairs to escalate the issue with Austria and said, “What insanity is this? @MEAIndia must take this up with the Austrian Embassy.” Subsequently, the MEA in coordination with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology took the matter to the X and asked the social media platform to block the X handle of the Austrian economist. Currently, the account remains suspended in India.

According to a report by the NDTV, when asked if the MEA would discuss the matter with the Austrian embassy, a MEA source remarked, “Why give this so much attention? He is a loony. Holds no official position."

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Who Is Gunther Fehlinger-Jahn? 

Gunther Fehlinger-Jahn is an Austrian economist who was born in Linz, Austria in 1968 and is best known for his advocacy of European Union and NATO expansion. He studied International Business at the Vienna University of Economics and Business.

Previously, he had called for the breakup of nations like Russia and Brazil who have been seen as opposed to western allies. His provocative statements have always involved countries which have been opposed to the NATO. 

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Gunther’s sharp comments against India’s sovereignty comes at a critical time when the country battles economic tariffs and straining international ties with USA. PM Modi’s recent SCO meeting and the alignments with Russia and China as seen in the international forum also shows a role-reversal of India’s international diplomatic ties. While the road looks bouncy for India’s international diplomacy, has the first signs of fallout begun?