External affairs minister S Jaishankar said that the government had taken note of an Islamic group based in Dhaka named ‘Saltanat-e-Bangla’, which was supported by a Turkish NGO the ‘Turkish Youth Federation’, after it shared a map of the so-called ‘Greater Bangladesh’ that showed Indian territory as part of it.

In a written reply to a starred question raised by Congress MP Randeep Singh Surjewala in the Rajya Sabha, Jaishankar said that the map had been put on display at Dhaka University.

The minister said that the government had been closely observing any developments that could affect India’s national security and continued to take all required steps to protect it.

A statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs quoted Jaishankar as saying, "The Government has taken note of reports that an Islamist group in Dhaka called the ‘Saltanat-e-Bangla’, backed by a Turkish NGO called the ‘Turkish Youth Federation’, has put out a map of the so-called ‘Greater Bangladesh’ that includes parts of India. The map was displayed in the Dhaka University."

The statement further said that the official fact-checking platform of the Bangladesh government, ‘BanglaFact’, stated that there was no proof of any activity by a group called ‘Saltanat-e-Bangla’ in Bangladesh. It also clarified that the map had been shown at a historical exhibition and was linked to the earlier Bengal Sultanate.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the map had been exhibited at Dhaka University during an event held on Pohela Boisakh on April 14, 2025. It added that the exhibition organisers denied having any connection to any foreign political organisation.

The statement from the minister was issued in response to the query submitted by Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala during the session in the Rajya Sabha.

Surjewala had asked the government to provide information about a radical group in Bangladesh that was allegedly supported by Turkey and involved in promoting a ‘Greater Bangladesh’ map including parts of Indian land.

He also asked whether the Indian government had raised the matter through diplomatic channels with the Bangladesh government and whether it had evaluated the security risks linked to the growing involvement of Turkey and Pakistan in Bangladesh.