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INTRODUCTION
Bangladesh is located between India and Myanmar in South Asia and shares 4,096.7 kms of its border with India in its west, north and east.1 It was part of Pakistan, known as East Pakistan till 1971, when Bangladesh emerged as an independent nation after a bloody civil war with Pakistan. Bangladesh is eighth most populous country in the world with more than 140 million people, as per the 2011 government census.2 It also has a high population density at 964 people per square km. Muslims dominate the population constituting 89.5 percent of the total (mainly Sunni Muslims), Hindus form 9.5 percent and others stand at 0.9 percent. Bangla is the official language in Bangladesh and 98 percent of the population speaks this language.3 As per a 2005 report by Goldman Sachs,this country has economic potential of becoming one of the largest economies in the world, known as 'Next Eleven'. However, this potential has largely remained untapped due to political instability, corruption, overpopulation and resultant poverty. Though Bangladesh is a unitary parliamentary republic, the Army has a history of dabbling in political affairs. There have been many military coups in Bangladesh, prominent among them taking place in 1975,1981,1982,1996 and 2007. The military coup in 1975 resulted in the assassination of President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman while President Zia-ur Rahman lost his life during the 1981 coup. Increasing presence of Islamic radicals in Bangladesh has been a cause of concern in the country. Let's examine how Islam started to play an active role in Bangladesh, a country that started its journey on the tenets of secularism and democracy.
Increasing Influence of Islam in Bangladesh Politics
Inclusion of present day Bangladesh as a part of Pakistan in 1947 was based on the predominance of religious majority (Muslims) in this area. However, East Pakistan was looked down upon by its rulers based in Islamabad. The ruling elites in Islamabad had a sense of aloofness towards their brethren in East Pakistan. They believed that practice of Islam in East Pakistan had become tainted due to its association with Hinduism.4 Attempts were made to sideline Bengali identity of East Pakistan. This was evident when Mohammad Ali Jinnah declared Urdu as the national language of Pakistan in 1948, despite opposition from...