In a now deleted Facebook post written in Bengali, Mahfuz Alam advocates the expansion of Bangladesh’s borders through the annexure of part of the north-east of India.
Mahfuz Alam, an alumni of Tamirul Millat Kamil Madrasah and special assistant to Bangladesh’s interim leader, recently posted an alarming message alongside a picture of a map where Bangladesh’s borders extended across the three Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam.1 His claim that Bangladesh must grow geographically in order to succeed as a country following the overthrow of the previous government is yet another worrying sign of how there has been a surge of extremist agendas infiltrating the political sphere in Bangladesh.
In the now deleted post, Alam argued that Bangladesh has to expand its borders in order to achieve liberation. Such inflammatory statements advocating geographical expansion are common within radical Islamist circles and reveal what some have called a deluded dream of establishing “Muslim hegemony throughout the entire world”.2 Nevertheless, such deluded dreams create real-life risks for nations and such statements emanating from members of the new interim government of Bangladesh have further strained relations with India, which lodged a strong protest with Dhaka over the now deleted post.3 It is noteworthy that India has recently stepped up security and its Borders Security Force has built new floating border outposts on the rivers that cross India’s border with Bangladesh.4
What is concerning is that Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh’s interim leader who is being endorsed by many in the West, appears to be turning a blind eye to Islamist agendas that are seeking to influence the interim government. He previously championed Mahfuz Alam in his address at a Clinton Global Initiative event in New York last year in September, introducing him as the “mastermind” of the protests which led to the changeover in Bangladesh and does not appear to have commented on Alam’s inflammatory post.5 One must question why Muhammad Yunus has chosen not to criticise or even address the inflammatory post by Alam and why he has chosen to appoint someone who has expressed extreme views as his special assistant. In addition, the interim government’s current Adviser for Religious Affairs is A.F.M. Khalid Hossain, a senior member of Hefazat-e-Islam, an extremist group that has a history of attacking Hindus and making provocative remarks about minorities.6
It is time for intolerant voices in Bangladesh and elsewhere to understand that advocating an expansion of borders to establish Muslim hegemony is a misguided fantasy in a pluralistic world and will only lead to further tension, conflict and violence. True peace and understanding will only materialise when there is mutual respect.7
References
- https://x.com/bdwatch2024/status/1868909966456999994
- https://www.hudson.org/national-security-defense/prophecy-the-jihad-in-the-indian-subcontinent
- https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/india-lodges-protest-with-bangladesh-over-map-post-by-muhammad-yunus-aide-7296329
- https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/01/04/bangladesh-india-annexation-threat-ghettoising-colonising/
- https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/foreign-affairs/359658/dr-yunus-introduces-mahfuz-alam-as-mastermind-of
- https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/nation/241438/hefazat-e-islam-followers-attack-hindu-houses-in/
- https://rajivmalhotra.com/tolerance-isnt-good-enough_-the-need-for-mutual-respect-in-interfaith-relations/
