The threat from ISIS-K is real and growing. A resurgence in Pakistan would have serious implications for the broader region, including India. The danger is compounded if Pakistan once again attempts to clandestinely redirect ISIS-K towards Kashmir. What may appear as an isolated terror incident is, in fact, part of a wider pattern that demands sustained vigilance. Pakistan’s internal security instability risks creating openings for cross-border terror movements, potentially hardening new militant modules aimed at India and beyond.
The optimistic view is that the “Twin Election” will force a compromise. The referendum provides a mandate for reform that even a BNP government cannot ignore. The “July Charter”, if ratified, creates checks on executive power that did not exist before. The students, even if they end up on the opposition benches, will form a moral pressure group that cannot be easily crushed. The cynical view is that Bangladesh is merely swapping a monopoly for a duopoly, or worse, a monopoly of a different colour.
All signs point to a BNP victory. In a competitive contest without the Awami League, the BNP’s organisational depth and electoral reach make it the frontrunner. Yet victory alone may not translate into authority. The absence of the Awami League, the continued influence of Sheikh Hasina from exile, the rise of Islamist alternatives, and the central role of unelected institutions mean that any new government will inherit a fractured polity. The 2026 election may revive the BNP’s fortunes, but it will not by itself heal Bangladesh’s democratic wounds.
Ultimately, Bangladesh’s absence from the 10th edition of the T20 World Cup was the result of the BCCI’s ego and the ICC’s double standards where power politics and selective decision-making outweighed fairness and sporting integrity. Although many view the Pakistan Cricket Board’s support for Bangladesh positively, in reality it is also a strategic move to counter India for its own strategic benefit. If the match is boycotted, Bangladesh will suffer even greater financial and administrative losses.
The region, overall, has gone through a major strategic realignment with the increasing influence of China, and its ties with Pakistan. Also, unlike the 90s, there exists multi-dimensional international cooperation on the issue of Afghanistan today, writes Shraddha Nand Bhatnagar for South Asia Monitor
The Chinese footprint in the South Asian region has been steadily increasing, while that of India is being diluted and all the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nations are differently dependent on Beijing for a mix of political, economic, trade and military support, writes Cmde C Uday Bhaskar (retd) for South Asia Monitor
If it’s any solace, this dreadful time has given rise to an unnamed bond among strangers—call it humanity, altruism, empathy—but it’s helping many of us stay afloat, writes Azera Parveen Rahman for South Asia Monitor
While India must resume supplies to its neighbors, there is much that it can also learn from some of their best practices, including Bhutan, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor
Pakistan’s 'all-weather friend' China has intensified communication with the Taliban. Afghanistan is very significant for China for Its Belt and Road Initiative, writes Md. Ishtiak Hossain for South Asia Monitor
South Asia - which had the longest period of school closure - could face a learning crisis which will set us back by a decade, writes Partha Pratim Mitra for South Asia Monitor
India's foreign policy mandarins know more than anyone else that altruism does not exist in international relations and diplomacy must be conducted on the basis of realpolitik acting only in pursuit of their self-interest, writes Lt Gen Yash Malhotra (retd) for the South Asia Monitor
But most experts agree that the country can reach ‘herd immunity’ if 70 to 80 percent of the population is fully immunised. That comes to a population of 1.05 billion, for whom 2.10 billion doses are needed, writes Vinod Aggarwal for South Asia Monitor
It would be interesting to know how American security experts view the threat perceptions from the numerous affiliates of the bodies in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, some of whom target India, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor
But for the waning of his appeal, it is difficult to explain why the BJP came a cropper in West Bengal even after the enormous effort which both Modi and his powerful Home Minister Amit Shah put into their campaigns in the state with scores of public rallies and roadshows, writes Amulya Ganguli for South Asia Monitor
Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal have joined the Beijing-led Platform along with Bangladesh. India, the largest country in South Asia, has stayed away, writes Swadesh Roy for South Asia Monitor
The future of regional politics in India depends on not just exploiting local tradition and pride for elections, but in beefing up governance, economy, public delivery of benefits and taking on Delhi when the interest of the state is at stake, writes Subir Bhaumik for South Asia Monitor
As the two countries move towards a thaw on the LoC, it is in their interest to put the contentious issues on the back burner and resume the people-to-people contacts as they did in 2003-04; resolve the Kulbhushan Jadhav issue; activate the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation; and engage in trade and commerce, writes Mayank Kumar for South Aisa Monitor
The incumbent Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) government took effective steps to expedite the Port City project, which could attract USD 15 billion in investments, and emerge as a leading business, retail, residential and tourist destination in South Asia, writes Sugeeswara Senadhira for South Aisa Monitor
There is little doubt that the whole of last year when the virus first appeared was spent in theatrical exercises based on a personality cult instead of strengthening the medical infrastructure so that the country would not be caught unawares when a second wave struck, writes Amulya Ganguli for South Asia Monitor
