A foreign policy seminar in Dhaka, Bangladesh, took an unexpected turn when a young Indian diplomat stood up to object to an incorrect map of India.
Pooja Kumari Jha, the Second Secretary at the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, noticed that a map displayed during a presentation wrongly depicted Jammu and Kashmir as part of Pakistan. The presentation was being delivered by Ahmed Tariq Karim, the former Bangladesh High Commissioner to India, at a seminar titled “Rebuilding Trust, Renewing Regional Integration: Pathways for Revitalising SAARC” at the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS).
Interrupting the speech from the audience, Jha firmly pointed out the error. “The map of India depicted is incorrect. Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India,” she stated.
Karim responded by clarifying that the map was used “for representational purposes only” and was not meant to project actual geopolitical boundaries. While acknowledging the explanation, Jha stood her ground to reiterate India’s official stance. “I understand, Sir, but Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, and it is misrepresented here. So I just wanted to point out,” she replied.
After confirming Jha’s diplomatic identity, Karim noted the objection and proceeded with the event. A video of the firm exchange has since gone viral on social media, with many praising the Indian diplomat for her prompt and assertive defense of India’s territorial integrity.
Following the brief pause, Karim continued his presentation on the historical legacy of colonial borders in South Asia. He explained how modern borders have reorganised political imaginations, frequently dividing families, markets, and ecosystems while turning once-shared historical spaces into contested territories managed by passports, visas, and mutual suspicion.
Bangladesh’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Shama Obaed, who attended the seminar as the chief guest, also spoke at the event, emphasizing the critical need for deeper regional cooperation and a calibrated set of confidence-building initiatives to revive the SAARC framework.
