David Bergman

Barrister Abdur Razzaq, in his posthumous memoir on 33 years in the Jamaat-e-Islami, titled “Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami: Its History and Politics,”does not pull his punches.

It is worth recalling that at his first press conference following BNP’s election victory, Bangladesh’s new prime minister, Tarique Rahman, was asked the following question:

In August 2025, I wrote in Prothom Alo about the arrest, 10 months earlier in October 2024, of Dr Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury—former power, energy, and mineral resources adviser to ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina—by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) on allegations of crimes against humanity.

Perhaps the most striking, and largely unforeseen, consequence of the fall of the Hasina government has been the surge in support for Jamaat-e-Islami over the past 18 months.

While the government insists that this will be the cleanest election in the country’s history, it remains uncertain whether sufficient safeguards and scrutiny are in place—within the Election Commission, among observers, or in the media—to prevent rigging

The implications of commencing trials before defence review rights are exercised

One must distinguish between two separate issues: the evidence presented by the prosecution against deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, and the fairness of the process and procedure of the trial itself.

Stopping arbitrary detentions is a governmental responsibility, and all those in the cabinet must also take their share of the blame.