This week in Himal
This week, Maximillian Morch writes about Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay’s political memoir, which promises insight into Bhutan’s democratic evolution but falls short in addressing the expulsion of Lhotshampas and other critical questions.
Don’t miss Harsh Mander’s essay on the political erasure of India’s Muslims by the Hindu Right.
We’re also excited to announce the launch of a new podcast series titled ‘Partitions of the Heart: Conversations with Harsh Mander’ exploring Muslim life and death in Modi’s India. Click here to listen to the first episode!
For the next episode of the State of Southasia podcast, host Nayantara Narayanan speaks with media development expert and former editor of Minivan News J J Robinson about youth protests and the shifting political culture in the Maldives after a young woman’s fall from an apartment building.
And finally, we’d like to invite all fiction-lovers to join the first panel event of Fiction Fest, which will be held on 9 June, 2025 at 7:30 PM IST (10 AM EST). Sign up here for the Zoom link. We look forward to seeing you there!
Also read: The political erasure of Indian Muslims
Also read: Muslim Life – and Death – in Modi’s India: A podcast with Harsh Mander
Also read: Bland lessons and careful lies from Bhutan’s prime minister
This week in Southasia
Bangladesh lifts ban on Jamaat-e-Islami
On 1 June, Bangladesh’s Supreme Court lifted a ban on the country’s largest Muslim party Jamaat-e-Islami, more than a decade after former prime minister Sheikh Hasina had banned it. The decision paves the way for Jamaat-e-Islami to contest planned general elections, slated to be held by June next year. The decision is a turnaround for the political party, which had previously struggled to earn more than 10 percent of the vote, in part due to their protectionist and conservative approach, and also partly due to history as during Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War, the party aligned with forces opposing independence.
In the aftermath of the student-led July protests which unseated Hasina’s regime, the Jamaat-e-Islami saw an opportunity to position itself as a ‘pro-revolutionary’ force, championing progressive and inclusive ideals, which has won it more supporters. This has included relief efforts after floods in the wake of the protests. Jamaat-e-Islami has also spoken out about minority rights, in stark contrast to previous hardline positions. The lifting of the ban on the Jamaat-e-Islami party comes after the acquittal of leader ATM Azaharul Islam who received a death sentence from the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal for ‘rape, murder and genocide’ while supporting Pakistani forces during the 1971 war. However, main opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party has continued to distance itself from the Jamaat-e-Islami, raising questions about the party’s positioning in the run-up to elections.
From 2013, Javed Jahangir writes in the aftermath of violence pitting Bangladesh’s police against the Jamaat-e-Islami, sparking peaceful protests that opened up a discussion about the place of religion in Bangladesh’s politics.
From the archive (March 2013)
Also read: Silence speaks volumes
Elsewhere in Southasia:
- Death toll climbs over 40 as monsoon rains caused landslides and floods in Northeast India, displacing thousands of people in the region
- Afghanistan and Pakistan upgrade diplomatic ties with the Pakistani charge d’affaires stationed in Kabul elevated to ambassador and the Taliban’s representative in Islamabad would also be upgraded after Pakistan foreign minister visit to Kabul last month
- Key witness testifying in trial of slain journalist Gauri Lankesh’s killers says he was threatened, warned not to identify the accused
- Teen TikTok star in Pakistan shot dead after man broke into her family home; 22 year old arrested
- Bangladesh’s interim government changes the definition of ‘freedom fighter’ under the Jatiya Muktijoddha Council Act and drops the words ‘Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman' from a key statute. The country also unveils banknotes that omit political figures, including the portrait of Rahman, the architect of Bangladesh’s liberation from Pakistan.
- Surveillance on suspected espionage in India increases in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack as at least nine people from across three states arrested for allegedly spying for Pakistan
- The Maldives enlists former president Mohamed Waheed to salvage critical diplomatic relationships following mounting frustration with the foreign ministry in the face of a looming debt crisis as 96 percent of international aid expected this year has failed to materialise
- At least 11 killed, many more injured in stampede outside cricket stadium in Karnataka to after home team’s victory in the Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket tournament
- China urges the Kachin Independence Army and the Arakan Army in Myanmar to halt their military offensives in Kachin and Rakhine states, where Beijing has initiated important infrastructure projects
- Nepal’s former home minister Kamal Thapa and several others arrested for trying to enter a restricted area in Kathmandu during pro-monarchy protests
- Pakistan secures USD 800 million aid package from the Asian Development Bank despite India’s objections over the potential misuse of the development funds for military expenditure
- Sri Lanka is continuing discussions with the United States on tariffs after a second round of in-person talks in Washington, Deputy Minister Harshana Suriyapperuma said
- Landslide in Tibet’s Chamdo kills three, injures two with seven reported missing after heavy rainfall reported in Tibetan-inhabited prefecture of Dechen
Happenings in Southasia
FILM SCREENING: Delhi, India - Chaar Phool Hain Aur Duniya Hai, The Bookshop Inc, 8 June 2025, 12 PM IST (registration required)
ART RETREAT: Skardu, Pakistan - The Skardu Art Retreat, Awaara Collective, 18-25 June 2025 (Booking required)
DISCUSSION: Colombo, Sri Lanka - Pluriversal Sovereignty and Colonial Contamination: Imperial Encounters in Sri Lanka and Turtle Island, Social Scientists' Association, 12 June 2025, 5 PM IST
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