Assam And Tripura On Bangladesh Map? Muhammad Yunus’ Gift To Pakistani General Sparks Outrage: Here’s What Happened

Bangladesh map controversy: Bangladesh’s interim chief, Muhammad Yunus, has found himself at the centre of a fresh diplomatic storm after gifting a controversial artwork to Pakistan’s Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, during the latter’s visit to Dhaka over the weekend.

According to a report by CNN-News18, the artwork titled “Art of Triumph: Bangladesh’s New Dawn” depicted a distorted map of Bangladesh that included India’s northeastern states — Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh — within its borders. The image, shared on Yunus’s official X account, showed him presenting the gift to General Mirza, triggering immediate outrage.

Controversial 'Greater Bangladesh' Map

The idea of a "Greater Bangladesh" supported by Dhaka Islamist movements like Sultanat-e-Bangla projects the inclusion of India's Northeast, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Rakhine State of Myanmar into Bangladesh. The map, first introduced in 2025 in an exhibition at the University of Dhaka, has already attracted severe criticism from Indian parliamentarians and foreign affairs analysts.

Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee of Pakistan Calls on Chief Adviser

DHAKA, October 26: The visiting Chairman of Pakistan’s Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, paid a courtesy call on Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at the State… pic.twitter.com/A9QmFMHk4F

— Chief Adviser of the Government of Bangladesh (@ChiefAdviserGoB) October 26, 2025

It is not the first time Yunus has attracted controversy regarding India's northeastern states. In April 2025 during his trip to China, Yunus characterised Bangladesh as the "sole guardian of the ocean" for the region, contending that India's seven states in the northeast were "landlocked" and relied on Dhaka for naval access.

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His remarks were rebutted by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, who emphasised that India’s Northeast is a key hub for regional connectivity through initiatives under BIMSTEC and the Act East Policy. Since taking charge in August 2024, following the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Yunus has visibly moved closer to China and Pakistan, a shift that has strained India-Bangladesh relations.

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The recent gestures of rapprochement between Islamabad and Dhaka, along with Yunus's repeated symbolic acts, have reinforced perceptions in New Delhi of a strategic realignment in South Asia.