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Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus has stirred fresh controversy by presenting a provocative artwork titled “Art of Triumph” to a visiting Turkish parliamentary delegation — just days after sharing the same piece with a senior Pakistani commander. The artwork, sources say, outlines a “Greater Bangladesh” vision that controversially includes India’s northeastern states, particularly Assam, as part of Dhaka’s long-term strategic blueprint.

Artwork seen as more than symbolic

According to intelligence inputs, the presentation, made during Yunus’s recent meeting with Turkish representatives, was far from a symbolic cultural exchange. The artwork reportedly contained detailed “battle plans” and “post-victory frameworks” aimed at integrating Assam into a “productive and viable region” under Bangladesh’s influence.

Officials familiar with the matter suggest the gesture was a calculated signal, not an innocent diplomatic display. “This was no art exhibition,” said one intelligence source. “It was a message — one directed at transnational Islamist networks that view Bangladesh’s interim leadership as central to a larger strategic consolidation.”

The timing of the move has raised eyebrows in regional security circles. Analysts say it coincides with Turkey’s broader pan-Islamist outreach across South and Southeast Asia — an effort that combines defence cooperation, drone technology transfers, and ideological partnerships. Since early 2024, Ankara has strengthened its engagement with Dhaka, offering military training, defence industry collaboration, and investments in emerging technologies.

Dhaka’s motives and regional implications

For Turkey, Bangladesh serves as a potential foothold in South Asia, a way to counter India’s expanding regional clout. For Dhaka’s interim regime, closer ties with Ankara provide a mix of international recognition and defence leverage at a politically uncertain time.

The explicit reference to a “Greater Bangladesh” marks what intelligence agencies describe as the first public expression of territorial intent by the interim government. Some see it as a test — an attempt to gauge how neighbouring nations, particularly India, might respond, while simultaneously appealing to Islamist sympathisers within and beyond Bangladesh.

India’s security establishment, sources confirm, is closely tracking these developments. The rhetoric represents a notable escalation — one that could further strain an already delicate relationship between New Delhi and Dhaka.