BJP MP Nishikant Dubey calls for 'reclaiming' Bangladesh's Chattogram, Noakhali and Sylhet, sparking fierce debate in India

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member of parliament Nishikant Dubey has called for the 'reclaiming' of the Chattogram port, Noakhali and Sylhet regions of neighbouring Bangladesh, claiming that a historic mistake was made at the time of the Partition of India.

The lawmaker, elected from the Godda constituency in the Indian state of Jharkhand, sharply criticised India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and compared the regions to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

In an interview with the Indian news agency ANI on Friday, Nishikant Dubey said, 'In my opinion, the time has come not only to reclaim Pakistan-occupied Kashmir from Pakistan, but also to bring back the territories handed over due to Nehruji's mistake. These include Noakhali, the Chattogram port and Sylhet.'

In the interview, the BJP MP claimed that at the time of the Partition in 1947, Maharaja Bir Bikram Singh of the then Tipra or Tripura kingdom had questioned the decision to include these regions in the then East Pakistan.

According to Dubey, 'Maharaja Bir Bikram consistently opposed Nehru's policy. He questioned how Tripura's historic boundaries and territory could be discussed, and why the people of Chattogram and Sylhet were given the opportunity of a referendum. The Maharaja clearly said that it was his right to decide whether Tripura would be part of India or remain independent, but Nehru did not accept it.'

He further claimed that it was only because India's first home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel took military action and the necessary steps in October 1948 that Tripura could finally formally become a part of India.

Dubey alleged that India's north-eastern states had lagged behind economically because the Chattogram port went to East Pakistan — present-day Bangladesh — at the time of Partition.

He said, 'If north-east India today appears to be a lagging region, if its mineral and natural resources cannot be properly used, and if there is a sense of alienation among the people, the sole reason is that India does not have the Chattogram port. That is why the time has now come to reclaim Chattogram, Noakhali and Sylhet.'

The BJP leader also accused Jawaharlal Nehru of indifference over the strategy of including the Muslim League in the interim government in 1946 and over the background of the Noakhali riots.

Dubey's remarks have triggered a strong reaction in India's domestic political arena. Opposition political parties have said that such provocative remarks about international borders and a sovereign neighbouring state should not be made from a responsible position in the country.

Nishikant Dubey has made headlines before for several controversial statements and actions. Two years ago, standing in the Lok Sabha, he demanded the formation of a new union territory combining the Malda and Murshidabad districts of West Bengal and the Kishanganj and Katihar districts of Bihar, alleging that the demography of those areas was changing.

He also played a leading role in the process of seeking the expulsion of Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra after raising a bribery allegation against her in the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee.

India's foreign ministry and the BJP's central leadership have not yet officially said anything about his latest remarks.