Muhammad Yunus: India's NE landlocked, could be to China advantage

DHAKA: Bangladesh chief adviser Muhammad Yunus has urged Beijing to extend its economic influence to Bangladesh, controversially mentioning that India's northeastern states being landlocked could prove to be an opportunity.

The remark, apparently made during Yunus' recent four-day visit to China, surfaced on social media on Monday.

Yunus, who met President Xi Jinping and signed nine agreements during the trip, said, "The seven states of India, the eastern part of India, are called the seven sisters. They are a landlocked region of India. They have no way to reach out to the ocean." Calling Bangladesh as the "only guardian of the ocean" in the region, he said this could be a huge opportunity and could be an extension of the Chinese economy.

Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of PM Modi's economy advisory council, posted the video on X and questioned why Yunus mentioned India's northeast. "Interesting that Yunus is making a public appeal to the Chinese on the basis that 7 states in India are landlocked. China is welcome to invest in Bangladesh, but what exactly is the significance of 7 Indian states being landlocked?" he said. pti