🇧🇩 🗳️ BNP landslide opens a new chapter in Bangladesh – Southasia Weekly #105

Yesterday, Bangladesh held its first election since the July 2024 Revolution that unseated the Awami League government. As I refreshed the news, updates started rolling in that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party was leading. This wasn’t a surprise - earlier in the week, Zyma Islam of the Daily Star and Nusmila Lohani of Netra News had predicted the same in conversation with Himal. At the same time, Bangladesh’s political stability is far from assured, given the ascendance of right-leaning conservative groups like Jamaat-e-Islami and others. The real questions begin now, as a new government works to meet the aspirations of Bangladesh’s citizens. To read more about Bangladesh’s stormy transition after Hasina, check out our series on Himal (with more to come!) Our editorial team worked day and night to put this series together to give you an inside-view on this crucial election, and we couldn’t have done it without your support. So if you’ve valued our coverage, please sign up to our Patrons programme and support our work. 

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This week in Himal

Navine Murshid writes that even as the results of Bangladesh’s 12 February election trickle in, women have lost in Bangladesh,  with familiar right-wing forces like Jamaat-e-Islami becoming contenders, despite many of the protest leaders being women.