For at least the last 10 years, the government of Turkey, led by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has been enabling Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza in an apparent attempt to create a route that will anchor neo-Ottoman supremacy in the Middle East. In 2020, Erdoğan claimed Jerusalem by saying in televised comments that “Jerusalem is our city; it is a city from us.”
In line with the same goal, Turkey has supported the Sunni Islamist insurgency in Syria, which led to the conquest of Damascus in December 2024 by jihadist forces led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, once the head of the Syrian al-Qaeda. Turkey’s government appears to pursue similar Islamist expansionist objectives in South Asia, as well.
Recent reports from Dhaka, Bangladesh’s capital, have sparked worries that Turkey is supporting the creation of a so-called “Greater Bangladesh,” after the emergence of a new regional map that would include parts of India, particularly in its eastern and northeast areas, as well as Myanmar’s Arakan state. The map is being promoted by a shadowy organization called Saltanat-e-Bangla, which operates under the NGO name “Turkish Youth Federation.”
This cannot be dismissed as fringe rhetoric or cartographic errors. Rather, it reflects a more profound and perilous undercurrent of radicalism that is being tolerated, if not subtly endorsed, by influential figures in Bangladesh.
The notion of “Greater Bangladesh” originates from various Islamist and ultranationalist narratives that have gained momentum in Bangladesh since the late 20th century. Additionally, factions sympathetic to Muhammad Yunus, the head of Bangladesh’s interim government, for instance, have suggested the incorporation of India’s northeastern states into their country. These ideas are sometimes articulated under the pretense of cultural unity or demographic continuity, yet they often carry a clear irredentist implication.
The public dissemination of the “Greater Bangladesh” map, which was reportedly placed in the teacher-student center of the Dhaka University, marks a transition from subtle ideological influence to explicit political communication, raising concerns in a region already burdened by intricate ethnic, linguistic and religious identities. Sources indicate that the teacher-student center serves as the temporary headquarters for Saltanat-e-Bangla.
A number of Turkish NGOs are active in Bangladesh, presenting themselves as providers of humanitarian aid, education and health services while subtly advancing the cause of pan-Islamic unity. Among these groups is the IHH, Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief, which has been scrutinized for its alleged connections to terrorist groups, such as the Islamic Jihad of Palestine, the Popular Front of India, and various radical organizations based in countries from Syria to Nepal.
Turkish influence is also on the rise in education, facilitated by numerous collaborations and memoranda of understanding between universities in Turkey and Bangladesh. The Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) has initiated educational programs and established a technical institute in Lalmonirhat, near the Silguri Corridor, an important land route for India.
Turkey is also utilizing a soft power approach to its influence through religious and cultural outreach, such as through TV programs that have captivated the Bangladeshi audience by depicting a glorious narrative of Turkey’s role in the Islamic world. These dramas, which are dubbed into the Bengali language, often glorify historical figures and events associated with Islamic conquests and empires, which may resonate with viewers seeking an Islamic identity.
In this light, such portrayals could inadvertently cultivate jihadist sentiments among some audiences, making them easy targets for Islamist terrorism; as highlighted in a study titled “Understanding female jihadism in Bangladesh: New trends in ‘new normal’?” which found that Islamist groups recruit new members by appealing to the notion of the idea of Islam’s so-called golden age.
Ironically, almost the entire Indian subcontinent, including Bangladesh, used to be majority Hindu before the Islamic invasions began in the eighth century. Throughout the centuries, the demographic structures of the region were altered to the advantage of Islam as a result of Islamic persecution, including massacres and the forced conversions to Islam, committed against Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and other non-Muslims.
As the threat of jihad and further Islamization continues to target non-Muslims on the Indian subcontinent, the emergence of a Turkish-backed “Greater Bangladesh” map initiative cannot be considered a standalone event. It is a project that resonates with Turkey’s larger goal of enhancing its geopolitical reach by rallying Islamist sentiments in regions that are receptive to such ideologies. It aims to take advantage of demographic and cultural weaknesses and disrupt the regional equilibrium.
Pakistan, India and Bangladesh comprise the largest block of the world’s Muslim population, which Turkey’s Erdoğan cannot ignore if he is to create the neo-Ottoman caliphate in his dreams; Hence, these maneuvers to try and destabilize the Indian subcontinent, particularly Bangladesh.
For Indian and Western governments and their strategic analysts, this situation should act as a wake-up call. The security framework of South Asia cannot afford to be indifferent to such cross-border transnational ideological projects.