India is rooting for an incumbent as Bangladesh goes to the polls on Monday (Jan. 7).
Current prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who served in the top job between 1996 and 2001 and was reelected in 2009, is seeking a fourth consecutive term in the the Muslim-majority country of 170 million. And while it’s made no official endorsement, its neighbor is hoping that the Awami League party leader retains her power. India, for its part, has plenty at stake in the results.
Bangladesh, which shares a border with India on three sides, saw many of its people migrate to northeastern Indian states like Assam, Mizoram, and West Bengal after its 1971 Independence War—one India helped it win. For half a century, India and Bangladesh have shared history, culture, social structures, and economic viewpoints. And today, maintaining relationships between the two countries is crucial to the security of India’s northeastern states.
As Bangladesh’s 2024 election approaches, India has subtly signaled its support for the current regime.
Bangladesh’s national elections have long been a flashpoint for violence, protests, and accusations of rigged results; of its 11 national elections, just four have been considered free and fair. This year, the Awami League’s main opponent, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), is boycotting the elections after Hasina refused to accept its proposition for a neutral outside government to oversee the polls. But while the US has called upon the prime minister’s party to come to agreements with the opposition, the world’s largest democracy has gone the other way—signaling support for how Hasina’s regime is handling things, and standing by its long-term ally.
Hasina and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi already have a healthy working relationship. Over the years, the Hasina administration has helped India clamp down on insurgents, terrorists, and separatists. The two governments have also partnered on infrastructure plans: Hasina and Modi have
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