India must remind Sheikh Hasina to keep authoritarian instincts in check

While Bangladesh's economy has surged ahead, her record on human rights leaves a lot to be desired. The GDP growth rates have clocked over 6% since 2011 and the growth hit as high as 7.86% in the last fiscal year. The poverty rate has been slashed considerably and the country is now the world's second largest garment exporter after China. Even as Bangladesh is on the brink of shedding its tag of 'least developed country', the government has crushed all opposition forces in the country. The Awami League has blunted the BNP's advantage among Islamist factions by itself pandering to Islamism. To be sure, Ms Hasina has cracked down on terrorism but has actively harassed journalists, arrested opposition leaders and remained passive to the killing of bloggers. India prefers Ms Hasina despite some efforts, of late, by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to mend ties with New Delhi. The BNP's reluctance to sever its ties with pro-Pakistan Jamaat-e-Islami - around two dozen Jamaat candidates contested on BNP's ticket on Sunday - has come in the way of any fruitful discussion with India. With Ms Hasina now as the unchallenged ruler, New Delhi would do well to quietly remind her from time to time to keep her authoritarian instincts in check for the greater good of democracy in her country. Dailyhunthttps://visual.ly/users/yozkelvozkeeneens2/portfolio