As the next general election in Bangladesh, which is expected to be held within the next few months is getting nearer, activities of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) – political and ideological rivals of ruling Awami League have been intensifying while BNP-Jamaat has now finally succeeded in using a section of the Indian media against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, despite the fact that, according to political analysts in India, Sheikh Hasina is the only trusted and time-tested friend of India, who has been always giving special emphasis on further strengthening existing bilateral and extremely cordial relations between Dhaka and New Delhi.
In a recent article written by Avinash Paliwal, teacher at SOAS University of London has said, “With elections in 2023 and debt repayment schedules kicking off in 2024, it seems only a matter of time for the veneer of stability to lose its sheen. The risk of dislocation of this so-called house of cards has only been rising in recent years”.
Branding secularist, anti-militancy and patriotic rule of Awami League government as “authoritarianism”, Avinash Paliwal further wrote “…an Indian official mentioned to me, and a Bangladeshi official echoed, Hasina “has built a house of cards”.
Paliwal further wrote: “With general elections due in 2023, and external debt repayment schedules kicking in from 2024, it is a matter of time for the veneer of (forced) stability to lose its sheen. The risk of dislocation, if not collapse, of this so-called house of cards has increased in recent years, and it could undermine whatever is left of India’s connectivity aspirations in its near east”.
Paliwal has also harshly criticized India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stating: “Hasina’s internal problems are linked to external dependencies. Politically reliant on New Delhi, she is finding it increasingly difficult to manage the ramifications of India’s turn towards Hindu nationalism that misuses migration from Bangladesh and the Rohingya crisis for domestic electoral gain”.
He wrote, “With elections in 2023 and debt repayment schedules kicking off in 2024, it seems only a matter of time for the veneer of stability to lose its sheen. The risk of dislocation of this so-called house of cards has only been rising in recent years”.
Anyone with elementary knowledge in journalism would easily understand, this article which has been published in The Hindustan Times with a disclaimer – clearly proves political rivals of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have been not only spending millions of dollars in the Western countries, particularly the United States towards lobbyist bids and exerting influence of media and rights groups, now the same vicious circle has also focused on Indian media, as they know, such propaganda would at least partially misled the policymakers in New Delhi. This certainly is an extension of the dark web of anti-Awami League activities, which is continuing in the West. One may assume – BNP-Jamaat nexus may try to get similar anti-Sheikh Hasina contents published in other media outlets in India as well as important nations in the Asian continent – including Japan, Singapore, South Korea and the Middle East.
It may be mentioned here that, while Washington has been repeatedly asking Awami League government for holding a free, fair, credible and participatory election and while Awami League has repeatedly made pledges stating the next general election will be free and fair, Washington policymakers or their representatives in Dhaka are unwilling to pursuing BNP in joining the election under Awami League government. During each of their meeting with US and European envoys in Dhaka, BNP leaders are consistently pressing their demand for holding the next general election under a “caretaker” government, while during a recent meeting with Ambassador Peter Haas, BNP leaders have requested to arrange a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, which may take place within the next couple of months. In fact, Antony Blinken and several officials at the US Department of State and US Department of Treasury are also willing to hold meetings with BNP top brasses to discuss Bangladesh’s upcoming election and “several key issues”, including issues related to corruption and human rights violation.
Meanwhile, BNP’s representative in the US and former US ambassador William B Milam, who is considered as an influential figure in the US Capitol, has been regularly circulating dossiers against the Awami League government amongst key figures in Washington DC and the UN headquarters.
On condition of anonymity, a highly-placed source in the US Capitol said, the Biden administration is unwilling to allow the Awami League in power following the next general election. With this agenda, they are secretly working on a list of dozens of individuals, on whom the United States would slap sanctions, mostly under the Global Magnitsky Act, if the next general election is not free, fair, credible and participatory. Meaning, the Biden administration wants the election to be participated by Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Jamaat-e-Islami, while they are aware that BNP shall not participate in the election unless it is held under a caretaker government comprising its chosen individuals.
Under such a difficult situation, shouldn’t the ruling Awami League immediately take appropriate and effective measures in countering media assaults of BNP-Jamaat nexus and stand firm against any international conspiracy against Bangladesh?
