Can India cut two 'Chicken Necks' of Bangladesh? Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma threatens to...

Amid worsening bilateral ties and escalating tensions between India and Bangladesh, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has issued a very strong warning to Dhaka. In the most unequivocal threat to the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, Sarma threatened to dismember the neighbouring country. In a press conference on Wednesday, he said, "We have one Chicken's Neck. But Bangladesh has two Chicken Necks. If Bangladesh attacks our Chicken's Neck, we will attack both the Chicken Necks of Bangladesh... the one in Meghalaya connecting Chittagong port in Bangladesh is even thinner than India's Chicken's Neck and is located just a stone's throw away."

(Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser, Bangladesh Interim Government)

Controversy over Chicken's Neck

The 20-kilometer-wide narrow corridor that connects the northeast to the rest of India is called the Chicken's Neck or the Siliguri Corridor.

Sarma's comment came weeks after Muhammad Yunus talked about the north-east during his China visit. He 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." He added, "So this opens up a huge possibility. This could be an extension of the Chinese economy." 

'Bangladesh should occupy...'

The controversy was further intensified when Major General (Retd) ALM Fazlur Rahman wrote on his social media account, "If India attacks Pakistan, Bangladesh should occupy the seven states of Northeastern India." He added, "I think it is necessary to start discussions with China on a joint military arrangement in this regard." 

'Chicken's Necks' of Bangladesh

Himanta Biswa Sarma's comment can be understood with the fact that Bangladesh indeed has two 'Chicken's Necks' similar to India's Siliguri Corridor. There is a narrow corridor that connects the main Bangladesh landmass to Chittagong, its largest port city. The second Chicken's Neck is the corridor south of the Rangpur division near the Indian state of Meghalaya.