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Violence Against Hindus: Is Bangladesh Burying Its Founding Ideals Of Secularism And Pluralism?

For Bangladesh’s Hindus, each funeral deepens the message that their lives are negotiable and their suffering invisible. If this trajectory continues unchecked, the country risks normalizing a culture of impunity that will ultimately consume more than one community. Violence ignored does not fade; it spreads. And the price of silence, as history repeatedly shows, is always paid in lives.

Tarique Rahman's Past Will Shadow His Nation's Future: Is Bangladesh Headed For Post-Election Conflict?

Keen observers of international and regional politics will not have missed the tacit presence of the invisible hand of the US in determining the democratic transition in Bangladesh.  Obviously, TarIque had been tutored by the Americans about the best way forward for the transition towards democratic rule and delivering on the promises on cooperation on regional security. The intelligentsia inside the country could have hoped for Tarique referring to ‘’historical’’ figures from the Indian subcontinent, the Muslim world, and Bangladesh’s past.

Nepal's Use Of Lethal Force And South Asia's Enforcement Vacuum

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation's (SAARC) Charter, by contrast, establishes no regional human rights treaty, monitoring body, or court. Scholars emphasize that governments in the subregion demonstrate a lack of deep commitment to human rights and remain unwilling to acknowledge subregional solutions. Victims of systemic violations have no forum for binding adjudication.

Trumpian Caprice Has India In A Bind: Will Need Foreign Policy Recalibration

This fully unfettered approach to everything Trump does also has serious consequences for India. At least through the duration of the Trump administration until 2028, the Modi government will have to spread around its geostrategic and geoeconomic needs among various countries such as Japan, Australia, Germany, France and the United Kingdom or collectives such as the European Union, even as it deals with America with some judicious leveraging.

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Will intra-Afghan dialogue bring peace to the Afghan people?

There are reports that the US will withdraw its forces from Afghanistan before the timeline. This will have bad consequences for the security of Afghanistan, the region, and the world, writes Mohamad Mosa Ahmadzai for South Asia Monitor

Biden, a friend of India, should be mindful of policy gaffes regarding South Asia

Of an estimated 3.5 million-plus Indian American community, about 70 percent are said to be the vote bank of Democrats, a number that the Biden campaign would not want to trifle with, writes Dr. Sridhar Krishnaswami for South Asia Monitor

Misplaced concerns over Nepal’s new citizenship bill blind a larger social reality

Cross-border marriages, i.e., matrimony between Nepal's son/daughter and India’s son/daughter are very common in India's bordering districts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, writes Jivesh Jha  for South Asia Monitor

India needs to strengthen ties with liberal democracies, South Asian neighbours to counter China

India needs to consolidate its relationship with the immediate neighbors by resolving the pending issues, particularly, the issue of immigration with Bangladesh and territorial disputes with Nepal, writes Dr. Arshad for South Asia Monitor

Children at increased risk of sexual abuse and exploitation during COVID-19 lockdown

There has to be enough focus on the protection of children from sexual abuse and parents, guardians, teachers and all those who are stakeholders in children’s welfare should be really aware of this aspect to ensure a safe and healthy childhood for our children during this time of coronavirus pandemic, writes Sonal Kellogg for South Asia Monitor

Taliban rule in Afghanistan will be aligned with China

With Pakistan becoming the vassal state of China, China plans to extend the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor into Afghanistan, writes Lt Gen P. C. Katoch (Retd) for South Asia Monitor

Countering China: Indian diplomacy is not on unfavorable grounds

Let us accept this fact that India and China are potential rivals in the power hierarchy in South Asia and outside, writes Aneek Chatterjee for South Asia Monitor 

P V Narasimha Rao: A resolute reformer that India chose to forget

Rao qualifies in more ways than one to be conferred with the nation's highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna, which has  become a political reward in recent years, writes C Uday Bhaskar for South Asia Monitor

Bollywood needs to redeem itself after Sushant Singh Rajput’s death; promote regional collaboration

With deep societal, cultural, and religious links with our South Asian neighbors, the links and legacy coupled with the reach and charisma of Bollywood could be a win-win combination for regional collaboration in the art and craft of film making, if appropriated thoughtfully and strategically, writes Ram Krishna Sinha for South Asia Monitor

India of 2020 is different from the India of 1962

In the current scenario, although India being a peaceful country does not want war with anyone, especially with China, India has developed infrastructure at the borders, strengthened its defence forces and has strategic relations with several countries, writes Jai Kumar Verma for South Asia Monitor 

India-China standoff: Need to be prepared for two-and-half front war (Part III of three-part series)

India's armed forces need to transform itself to deter and if necessary fight and win a two-front war, and ensure that both China and Pakistan will bear the consequences of military and national embarrassment, writes Lt Gen PR Kumar (retd) for South Asia Monitor 

When democracy died in India - and people triumphed

That fateful March 1977 election vindicated Indian democratic traditions and proved the triumph of freedom over bread, writes Tarun Basu for South Asia Monitor

COVID-19 and the world of work: Contours of policy design for South Asia

The distribution of the COVID-19 package across countries of the South Asian region shows that India has been one of the largest beneficiaries but the per capita package is lower than the Maldives and Bhutan due to the smaller population of these countries, writes Partha Pratim Mitra for South Asia Monitor

India steps up health diplomacy to build new narratives in multilateralism

Although the COVID-19 crisis has provided an immediate context for Indian outreach, health has been for years on its foreign policy agenda and New Delhi has been quite active in promoting global health partnerships, writes Saroj Mohanty for South Asia Monitor

When history was made in India 45 years ago: Lessons from the Emergency

June 25, 2020, is the 45th anniversary of the infamous Emergency imposed on the country by Mrs. Gandhi, even while countrywide protests had erupted against her continuation in power, writes Vinod Aggarwal for South Asia Monitor