Trolling is hit-or-miss politics. It is unstable, often unserious, and frequently destructive to governance. But when it works, its impact is asymmetrical -- geometric, even gigantic-- compared to traditional campaigning.
The greater challenge lies not in predicting who will dominate a flawed structure, but in recognizing how much uncertainty -- political, institutional, and informational -- has been baked into its foundations and may reflect in the vote itself.
A Bangladesh that wants diplomatic space to grow must first secure strategic space. If it wants autonomy, it must first make coercion unprofitable. That is the hard, unromantic truth of the world as it is, not as we might wish it to be.
At the end of the day, the final test of this government is not whether the referendum passes or not, but whether they have been able to hold a credible election and whether the referendum process itself was managed without a hitch.
An independent central bank could have prevented bank fraud and inflation. There is no alternative unless we want to return to the bad old days of high inflation and a plummeting Taka.
What we have here is selective presentation designed to secure approval through incomplete information. The ballot emphasizes what is popular; the fine print includes what is contentious.
As Bangladesh prepares for the long-awaited national election, it is important to remember that strengthening democracy and building peace on the foundation of collective amnesia will be a disaster for our nation.
Bangladesh will remember the outgoing Chief Adviser with respect for stepping up when the country desperately needed him. His record in government is, predictably, mixed. Was it fair to have expected more?
Under the Prophet’s leadership women’s contribution was embedded in the building blocks of the new Islamic era of Madinah al Munawwara.
As Bangladesh enters into its first real general election since 2008, we will finally be given a snapshot of where the country stands electorally. Have the polls and the pundits called it correctly, or are we in for a February surprise? Only Election Day will tell.
In Episode 8 of Counterpoint Generations, the discussion explores Bangladesh’s electoral journey from the 1970 election to the present, examining how voting behaviour, political participation, and institutions have evolved over time. The episode also addresses contemporary questions around minority voting patterns, and why opinion polls often fail to predict real outcomes. A reflective conversation on elections, uncertainty, and democratic change.
Success depends on three commitments that cannot be deferred: Speed. Visible, funded action in year one. Not plans for action. Action. Resources. Specific, budgeted commitments, not proposals
We should treat the promise of this election with the respect it deserves. The students who gave their lives, the activists who risked everything, the ordinary citizens who stood up against tyranny, did not do so for narrow partisan advantage. They did so for Bangladesh.
Whatever the causes, Bangladesh cannot wait indefinitely. It must build damage-reducing infrastructure without delay. This does not replace a water-sharing settlement; it reduces damage while politics drags on, and it must be designed with geo-politics in mind.
The problem here is not Islam. The problem is the elevation of one man’s subjective, historically contingent interpretation to the status of immutable religious truth. To present such views as 'Islamic policy' is intellectually dishonest and politically dangerous.
India’s political field has bent under pressure but has not collapsed. Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s political field is far more fragile.
