Bangladesh Divided

Q M Jalal Khan earned his MA from American University through the Fulbright program and his PhD from New York University. Khan has taught English in Malaysia and the Middle East. In addition to numerous articles, Khan has published four books—two on literary criticism and two on the Hasina regime in Bangladesh—including Bangladesh: Political and Literary Reflections on a Divided Country (Peter Lang, 2018).

“This book is an invaluable contribution on the studies of politics and political developments in Bangladesh, especially during Sheikh Hasina’s authoritarian regime since 2009. The country’s significant economic progress, however lopsided and corruption-ridden that may be, has been overshadowed by the assault on democratic governance for a highly authoritarian system. Ruthless suppression of political and media dissent using the arbitrary mass detention, torture, incarceration, enforced disappearances, wholesale rigging of elections, and unbridled corruption in the legal, administrative, and policing system have raised serious questions about the character, motives, and agenda of the Hasina regime. Constitutional amendments for political manipulation and power politics have made a mockery of any semblance to democratic rule. The country is divided into two mutually hostile camps, with serious repercussions for its future. Q M Jalal Khan’s previously published book, Bangladesh: Political and Literary Reflections on a Divided Country, earned wide acclaim among all those who are interested in Bangladesh affairs. The present volume covers additional, more recent aspects on the subject made up-to-date as of the end of September 2018. Most scholarly studies on South Asian affairs are dominated by topics on India and Pakistan with very little attention to Bangladesh. Khan’s informative and analytical contributions add to the store of research-based studies on the contemporary history of Bangladesh and hopefully will be a very important ingredient for future studies.”—Khalifa Mohammad Abdul Malik, former Professor of Chemistry at the University of Dhaka and Cardiff University and author of political publications on Bangladesh

• Acknowledgements – Foreword – A Sour and Bitter Taste of Bangladesh Under Sheikh Hasina: Extracts/Excerpts From the International Media – Part A. The Main Text – Preface and Introduction – Bangladesh Dented, Demoted, and Demented Under Sheikh Hasina’s Digital Carnival of Corruption and Ruthless Repression – Sheikh Hasina’s Fascist Accumulation of Power and Control Through Her Police Force and Her Machiavellian Malarkey – Sheikh Hasina’s Terror Police (Police League?) and the Brutal Repression of the BNP, the Largest Political Party of Bangladesh – Sheikh Hasina’s Egotistical and Egregious Personalization of Democracy and Her Steamroller Suppression of the People’s Choices and Voices – Sheikh Hasina’s Dirty Policy of Divide and Rule, Sabotage, and Subversion: An Impediment to Peace, Freedom, and Unity – Forty-Eight Questions for the Fantastically Fascistic Sheikh Hasina – Top-Notch Treatment of the Top Court in Bangladesh: Sheikh Hasina’s Convenient Redefinition of Contempt of Court – Strong Election Commission (EC) but Stronger Neutral Care-Taker Government (CTG) – Unwanted Indian Interference in the Politics, Economy, and Culture of Bangladesh – Muslim Rohingyas and the Buddhist Myanmar: Is Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh Hopelessly Abandoned by Her Too Friendly, Yet More Unfriendly Master Neighbor India? – On Those Bumps and Blunders and Bloopers by the Opposition BNP – Miracles? Only Plus (+) Hasina the Horrible? Only Minus (–) Khaleda the Admirable? – Conclusion and Postscript – Part B. Five Political Poems on the Divided and Authoritarian Awami Bangladesh – Beauty of Bangladesh: The Obverse – Bangladesh: As Split as Us and They – No Matter What, Let’s Go Digital – The Awami Principles Versified – Beauty of Bangladesh: The Reverse – Part C. Two Short Chapters on Academic and Cultural Divide in Bangladesh – Master’s Degree Holding Teaching Faculty and the Higher Education in Bangladesh – Standard/প্রমিত বা বিশুদ্ধ Bangla and Mixed/প্রভাবিত বা মিশ্র Bangla: In Favor of the Latter – Part D. Pieces on Donald Trump: Lessons and Implications for Bangladesh – Hazlitt’s "The Indian Jugglers" and Donald Trump’s Visit to Riyadh: A Successful Circus? – A Pre-Election Who Said What Account of Donald Trump: Lessons and Implications for Bangladesh – On Certain Aspects of Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin, and Donald Trump – A Portrait of Donald Trump: Concordances With the Characters in Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion (1913) – Barack Obama’s Last Presidential Looks at Michelle: Shakespearean, Da Vincian, and Wordsworthian Elements? – Part E. Five Political Poems of International Interest – On Barack Obama’s Second Inauguration (20 January 2013) – Poetry, Critical Theory, and the Princess – Bosnia and Herzegovina, August 1995 – CNN Footage of a Kosovar Mass Grave (1995/1996) – Happy New Year (2009) to Israel – Part F. Appendices – Appendix A: Displacement/Replacement of Islamic Religion in Bangladesh – Appendix B: Alleged Conspiracies Behind the (25 February 2009) Pilkhana BDR Massacre – Appendix C: 15 August: Know the Facts, Not Fiction by Abu Obaid Chowdhury (Ranu Chowdhury) USA – Appendix D: Hasina’s Zia Phobia by Abu Obaid Chowdhury (Ranu Chowdhury) USA – Appendix E: Unforgettable Zia That I Knew: A Flashback by Abu Obaid Chowdhury (Ranu Chowdhury) – Appendix F: Three Summaries of How the 3–7 November 1975 Events Unfolded – Appendix G: পরিকল্পনা ছিল রেডিও স্টেশনে নেয়ার নামে জিয়াকে খুন করা মেজর জেনারেল আ ল ম ফজলুর রহমান (অব.) – Appendix H: A Declaration of Independence Article – Appendix I: প্রেসিডেন্ট জিয়ার জীবন থেকে দুটি শিক্ষা শফিক রেহমান – Appendix J: Selected Independence-Related Political and Historical Works on Bangladesh – Appendix K: Links to a Few Media Reports of Endless Awami Vote Rigging on 30 December 2018.