How Sheikh Hasina weaponised Hindus in Bangladesh – Southasia Weekly #45
This week at Himal
As Bangladesh’s interim government struggles to rebuild, data on the Hindu community’s suffering has begun to emerge. Zia Hassan writes that India’s establishment and mainstream media have ignored Sheikh Hasina’s weaponisation of the Hindu minority in Bangladesh, and how post-revolution violence has been driven more by political reasons.
For our next Podcast of the Week, we have a special end-of-year episode with our Editor Roman Gautam and our two podcast hosts, Nayantara Narayanan and Shwetha Srikanthan, as they reflect on our work this year and plans for 2025.
This week in Southasia
Sri Lanka’s new president visits India
On 15 December, Sri Lanka’s president Anura Kumara Dissanayake arrived in India on an official visit - his first since winning the presidential election. During the visit, Dissanayake thanked India for providing over USD 4 billion in emergency financing and for crucial assistance in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process. Dissanayake and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi committed to building ties in a number of key sectors, including connectivity, energy development and digitisation. Modi announced plans to enhance electricity grid connectivity and a multi-product petroleum pipeline, while expediting projects such as the Sampur power plant project and signing the ETCA agreement. Also discussed were the frequent disputes between Indian and Sri Lankan fishermen, with calls to address concerns in a “humanitarian” manner.
Shortly after the presidential election, there were concerns raised that Dissanayake, who hails from the left-leaning Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, would be anti-India, given past stances on the ETCA agreement and the 13th amendment. However, as analysts have explained, Dissanayake has shown a willingness to work with India (in part to navigate through Sri Lanka’s debt crisis, as India is a key creditor). Shortly after the visit concluded, Dissanayake discussed Chinese development partnership and investments with a visiting delegation from the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference in a bid to balance relations, as China is also a key creditor in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process. On 23 November, the International Monetary Fund approved the third review of Sri Lanka’s bailout package, releasing about USD 333 million, but warned that Sri Lanka’s economy remained vulnerable. Critics have pointed out that decades of turning to the IMF has only yielded further crises for Sri Lanka - but solutions remain elusive.
Elsewhere in Southasia 📡
Bangladesh plans to hold elections in late 2025 or early 2026, interim leader Muhammad Yunus says, citing delays from implementing electoral reforms amidst growing pressure to set a date for election after Sheikh Hasina’s fall
Nepal introduces new bill to regulate social media; activists, digital rights experts raise concerns about restrictions to freedom of expression
India proposes ‘One Nation, One Election’ bill to synchronise election cycles by holding state and federal elections simultaneously, sparking debate over power dynamics, erosion of India’s federal structure and saving campaign costs
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari refuses to approve the Societies Registration Bill, saying bypassing current procedures for madrasa registration could invite criticism and sanctions from global organisations
Sri Lanka’s Parliament Speaker Ashoka Ranwala resigns over allegations of a fake doctorate degree, with deeper implications for his ruling National People’s Power party that promised government transparency and accountability
US sanctions 4 entities in Pakistan for their involvement in the country’s long-range ballistic missile programme to act against “the proliferation of weapons of mass destructions or their means of delivery”
52 killed and over 70 injured in two bus accidents in Afghanistan’s Ghazni province, the Taliban head of information and culture Hamidullah Nisar said
International rights groups raise concerns over process of appointing members to Nepal’s commission investigating enforced disappearances as previous shortlist sparked widespread criticism
29 people evacuated to temporary shelters after a massive fire broke out at a block of government buildings in Malé
Bhutanese King met with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to promote regional economic development, including establishing more trade routes along the India-Bhutan border in Assam
Anti-junta armed group Karen National Union recaptures its headquarters of Manerplaw along Thai border after 30 years
Around 100 Rohingya refugees fleeing ongoing violence, persecution in Myanmar rescued by navy personnel off coast of northern Sri Lanka
Only in Southasia!
For the past few weeks, the educational qualifications of Sri Lanka's MPs has been a topic of conversation after NPP MP Ashoka Ranawala resigned from the post of Parliament Speaker due to allegations that he had faked his doctorate degree (not unlike Indian prime minister Modi's MA degree in 'Entire Political Science!') This has led to a storm of accusations about the degrees of a number of Sri Lanka's MPs - among them Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa. Few would dare question Premadasa's academic credentials, given that his famously wordy tweets have prompted questions about whether he had perhaps swallowed a thesaurus in the past. But NPP MP Nalinda Jayatissa did, prompting Premadasa to proudly present not just his degree certificate but all his educational qualifications in Parliament the next day, which he then tabled for good measure (a gesture worthy of any Southasian parent). Premadasa wasn't the only one - Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody went one further, lodging a complaint at the CID and holding a press conference brandishing his degree certificate. All well and good, except that in our experience, degree certificates do not an honest politico make.
From the archive
Who gets to write about Ambedkar? (July 2023)
This week, Amit Shah's flippant remarks in parliament about anti-caste advocate B R Ambedkar have created a storm of controversy, making Harish S Wankhede's piece relevant again. Wankhede revisits six reappraisals of Ambedkar's life and work, finding a gulf between Dalit-Bahujan and Anglophone writings on Ambedkar - the former showcasing not just his philosophy but his struggles for social justice, in stark contrast to the curated pictures of Ambedkar's life and mind favoured by the ruling classes.