Bangladesh’s Politics Post-Sheikh Hasina’s Rule

• A year after Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule ended, Bangladesh is grappling with a politics far from democratic aspirations.

• Despite promises from Muhammad Yunus, the country has seen a surge in religious extremism and a breakdown of the rule of law.

• Awami League leaders have been jailed, hundreds have been released, and many others have escaped from jail.

• The ancestral home of Bangladesh’s founding president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and other symbols of the old regime have been destroyed.

• Bangladesh’s pluralistic culture has been besieged, with violence against minorities flagged by the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council.

• The US Commission on International Religious Freedom reports that pressure on religious minorities has worsened.

• Violent crime has increased, and an unstable economy is weighed down by slowing growth and mounting public debt.

• Yunus has announced an election in April 2026, pledging commitment to “rule of law, human rights, and moral values.”

• Delhi must maintain open communication with Dhaka, engage all political actors, and work to insulate bilateral ties from domestic politics.