In a provocative statement, retired Bangladeshi army officer Major General ALM Fazlur Rahman suggested that Bangladesh should ally with China to seize India’s northeastern states if New Delhi attacks Pakistan in response to a recent terrorist strike in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam. The attack killed at least 26 people, mostly tourists, and injured several others.

Rahman made the comments in Bengali on Facebook, stating, “If India attacks Pakistan, Bangladesh should occupy the seven northeastern states of India.” He also proposed initiating discussions with China on a joint military strategy.

The Bangladesh government, led by interim Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, swiftly distanced itself from Rahman’s remarks. In a statement on Friday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs clarified, “The comments do not reflect the position or policies of the government of Bangladesh,” adding that such rhetoric is not endorsed or supported.

Rahman, a close associate of Yunus, was appointed in December 2024 as chairman of a commission investigating the 2009 Bangladesh Rifles revolt.

Controversy intensified after a video emerged of Yunus during a visit to China, where he described Bangladesh as a gateway to the sea for India’s landlocked northeast and invited China to establish economic bases in the country. In response to the escalating rhetoric, India withdrew a key transshipment facility for Bangladeshi exports in April.