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.
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.
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.
The ruling governments in Bangladesh often seek to use these laws in various ways. Critical expression, especially criticism of the government or raising questions about religion, can be met with swift arrest and harassment through laws such as the Digital Security Act (DSA). In addition, allegations of religious blasphemy are used to pressure and marginalize political opponents, opposition parties, and dissenting voices. Religious extremist groups use these laws to promote their ideology or to intimidate people of different faiths or those who hold non-religious views.
India is the world's second-largest producer and consumer of potatoes, with 51.30 million tons harvested in 2020. China leads the way, producing 78.24 million tons of potatoes in 2020. Together, the two nations account for more than one-third of global potato output (359.07 MT).
The politico-corporate nexus in India is a reality; corporates are given prized land since they substantially fund elections, because of which enormous bank loans given to them are written off periodically. In 2020, the government allotted 150 sq km of Ladakh pasture land to corporates with no safeguard to locals, who fear this may increase further, aggravating climate change and adversely affecting ecology.
Women’s experience and role often remain invisible in global climate discussions. Representatives of major countries discuss economics and technology at international conferences, but the real suffering of local women is not included. Yet women know how to save seeds in farming, conserve rainwater, or save families during disasters.
Bangladesh risks not just unrest in its hills but becoming an unwilling participant in a global proxy war. The fires of Khagragachi may be small compared with the wars across the border, but left untended, they could burn far beyond Bangladesh’s control.
The question now is will these idiocies continue with the first India-Pakistan match of the 2025 Women’s World Cup scheduled on October 5, 2025. There may be more India-Pakistan matches in this series. Besides, the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles also includes cricket.
While India will hope to repair broken relations with the US, this is a defining moment when we are likely to witness the designing of a strategically decisive foreign and security policy. The Act East policy will, certainly, grow stronger reflecting the reality of the Rising East.
The Sharif-Yunus meeting, albeit routine, acquires a sharper edge because both Pakistan and Bangladesh are at loggerheads with India. The pervasive sense right now is that New Delhi is diplomatically besieged even as Islamabad craftily navigates its way out of its staggering economic crises and perpetually fractious polity.
Bangladesh stands at a knife’s edge. Yunus’ Islamist-driven regime, cloaked in the language of reform, is orchestrating the most dangerous assault on the country’s security in decades. Its outcome will not remain confined to Dhaka. It will destabilize India, threaten the Gulf, embolden jihadists, and export terror into the West.
The popularity and the momentum of sports activities, especially the major sporting events, have played a significant role in healing the wounds of a region that has witnessed years of chaos and disturbance. Through the excitement of sports, the joy of victories, and the sense of unity they create, sports have become more than just games; they are a source of hope, resilience, and social inclusion.
The war in Gaza demands a ceasefire. So does our war on nature. It demands Net Zero. IPCC has written the resolution for this ‘ceasefire’. This is not a metaphor. We are extracting, polluting, and emitting our way to collective suicide by adding fossil fuel on the spreading wildfire.
By outsourcing its defence to Pakistan and, indirectly, to China, Riyadh has loosened its obligations. Freed from Washington’s security leash, the Saudis can theoretically price oil in whatever currency they choose. The fact is that any disruptions in the riyal-dollar relationship would risk global financial equilibrium and undermine investor trust in the greenback.
In broader geostrategic terms, the defense pact is also an indicator of growing apprehensions in the Middle East about the United States as a reliable security guarantor any longer. It is also possible that Washington may have at least tacitly approved of the defense pact.
Nepal's dependence on remittances and decades of corruption, unemployment, and political stagnation came to a head during the Gen Z protests, which cost the lives of 72 people. Their sacrifice must lead to a ten-pillar change that turns vandalism into rebuilding, corruption into trust, and protest into the start of Nepal's renewal.
Shared river systems, shared vulnerabilities, and shared futures mean that India and Pakistan must set aside hostility and cooperate on vital planetary issues. Equally, both must press the world’s richest polluting nations to deliver on promised climate finance. The deluge is already here.
Yet India’s response is neither impulsive nor reactionary—it is rooted in a long tradition of strategic autonomy. From Nehru’s Cold War non-alignment to today’s “multi-alignment,” successive governments have insisted on freedom of action, refusing to let outside powers dictate India’s role in the world. This ethos, born of colonial subjugation, now guides New Delhi’s diversified diplomacy
