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BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has been nominated for the Bogura-6 constituency in the 13th national parliamentary election.
Modern football is no longer confined to the goal line and touchline. It is a contest of technology, psychology, words and tactics — at times even of shrewd manoeuvring. The match Bangladesh played against Hong Kong-China could easily have been held in the afternoon or evening; but starting it at 8 pm had a clear purpose — to throw the visiting side into possible logistical complications ahead of their away match on 14 October.
In early October 2015, Cricket Australia postponed its scheduled tour of Bangladesh citing security concerns. Around the same time, the country’s national football team was also due to visit Dhaka. Just like the cricketers, the Socceroos also backed out. Their demand was that the match be shifted elsewhere. But after reviewing the security situation in Bangladesh, FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) declared that the match would be held in Dhaka. If Australia refused to play, Bangladesh would be awarded three points. Yet the International Cricket Council (ICC) could not compel the Australians to tour Bangladesh.
“Fraud is an uncommon, well-considered, imperceptibly concealed, time-evolving and often carefully organized crime which appears in many types of forms.” – Van Vlasselaer et al
The initiative to introduce the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR) system is commendable. My point is: Mobile handsets are now being manufactured in the country. Therefore, the initiative to end the market of handsets smuggled through tax evasion to encourage local production should be viewed with appreciation. But the question is how many times will BTRC take such initiative, and how many times will we appreciate it and be disappointed?
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On Monday morning, I was utterly shocked after watching a video clip. Filmed from a distance, the video showed towering flames rising above the trees, lighting up the night sky. At first glance, I thought the footage was from Ukraine or Gaza. But soon I realised I was wrong. According to various media reports, it was not a scene of destruction from abroad, but from Savar, on the outskirts of Dhaka—where students of Daffodil International University had vandalised and set fire to the campus of City University. As the day went on, the horror of the incident became even clearer.
Fourteen months ago, a mass uprising had raised a wave of hope across the nation. The arrival of the interim government under Dr Muhammad Yunus had inspired dreams of a new dawn. Many described it as a “government of morality” or a “bridge of change”.
We are passing through a time when Bangladesh stands at a crucial crossroads in its history. In 2024, a historic mass uprising ended the Awami League government’s fifteen-year rule, and within a few months, Bangladesh is moving towards an election. Just as the country’s history holds the glorious chapter of the Liberation War, it also bears the cries of justice lost in the dark alleys of power. More than half a century after independence, the nation is still searching for a stable democracy in which every branch of the state works for the people’s welfare, and politics reflects ethics and morality. Yet the people of this country have repeatedly witnessed electoral farce, capture of polling centres, ballot-stuffing and violence. From national to by-elections and countless local polls, many have been questioned over time. Political disputes centring on elections have become a permanent feature of Bangladesh, eroding public trust in the process and often putting democracy itself in doubt.
The results of the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations for the current year, 2025, have recently been published. The average pass rate across the 11 education boards is 58.83 per cent. More than 1.2 million students took the exams, half of them girls. The pass rate has dropped by 18 per cent compared to last year. The poor results have caused an uproar on social media, as the failure of 41.17 per cent of candidates cannot be acceptable. When out of 1.2 million examinees, around half a million fail, questions are bound to arise.
No third political force has emerged in Bangladesh after the Awami League and BNP. The Jatiya Party has effectively acted as the Awami League’s B team. Since the July uprising, there have been murmurs in the public sphere that Jamaat-e-Islami might form the next government. The results of student union elections at several public universities appear to hint at that possibility.
The present state of Bangladesh’s political structure after the people’s uprising of 2024 can be called an exceptional arrangement.
A year ago, a bearing pad first fell off from the metro rail structure in the Farmgate area. As there were no casualties then, the Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) did not take the matter seriously. That negligence has now led to history repeating itself — another bearing pad has fallen in the same spot after a year, claiming the life of a young man. His wife has lost her husband, and their two children are now orphans. The government has fixed the compensation at just five lakh taka. To make matters worse, the inquiry committee formed to investigate the incident is headed by the former managing director of the same DMTCL — the very organisation whose irresponsibility caused this fatal disaster for the second time. Both these government decisions are nothing short of mockery towards the public and will only increase the risk of future accidents.
Bangladesh has long stood as a pioneer in global public health, becoming one of the first nations to ratify the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). At the heart of this treaty lies Article 5.3, a powerful provision that recognizes a simple truth: the interests of the tobacco industry are fundamentally and irreconcilably opposed to public health. By signing this treaty, the government made a solemn pledge to protect its citizens from the devastating harm of tobacco and to keep policymaking free from industry interference. This was not a symbolic promise but a binding commitment to shield the nation from one of the most destructive commercial epidemics in human history.
Once upon a time, Dhaka was a city of canals, ponds and rivers. Today, that aquatic network is disappearing under the pressure of encroachment and development. To the present generation, that image of Dhaka perhaps sounds like a tale, as most of its canals and ponds have now vanished into thin air. Journalist and writer Helemul Alam has been consistently working for over two decades on urban life, the environment and civic crises. His two recently published research-based books — “Oasis Lost to Urban Sprawl: An In-Depth Look into Dhaka’s Lost Ponds” and “Dhaka’s Canals on Their Dying Breath: An In-Depth Look at How the Capital's Waterways Are Being Choked” — have earned readers’ praise as significant documents of urban history and the environmental movement. Recently, on behalf of Views Bangladesh, General Secretary of the Urban Development Journalists Forum-Bangladesh (UDJFB) Faisal Khan interviewed him about his journalism, field research, childhood memories and commitment to protecting waterbodies in the capital.
At least 19 people were killed on Monday morning, November 3, when a bus and a truck collided head-on in Shevela Mandal, in India’s Telangana state.
At least seven people were killed and more than 150 injured after a powerful earthquake struck Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan. The 6.3-magnitude quake hit at 12:59 am local time on Monday, November 3.
Elon Musk, Chief Executive of Tesla, has retained his position as the world’s richest person, according to Forbes magazine’s list of the top ten wealthiest individuals for November.
US President Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to prepare for a possible military operation in Nigeria, a Muslim-majority African nation. Following Trump’s directive on Saturday, the US Defence Secretary said Washington is ready to take “appropriate action” if the Nigerian government fails to protect its Christian population.
“Fraud is an uncommon, well-considered, imperceptibly concealed, time-evolving and often carefully organized crime which appears in many types of forms.” – Van Vlasselaer et al
BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has been nominated for the Bogura-6 constituency in the 13th national parliamentary election.
Bangladesh Bank has twice invited applications for establishing digital banks in the country. Under the previous government, two licenses were politically approved and granted—one to Nagad and the other to Kori. However, following the political shift after 5th August 2024, those licenses were suspended.
Writer, journalist, and adventurer Gazi Munsur Aziz has completed his seventh solo marathon in memory of his late friend, Everest summiteer Sajal Khaled. The 42.195 km marathon took place today, October 24, along the Cox’s Bazar Marine Drive.
Three days ago, at the Joy Forum 2025 event in Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh, Bollywood superstars Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan came together. The interview was conducted by Razan. Nearly 10 years after appearing together at an event hosted by Rajat Sharma, the three stars appeared on a public stage together, discussing many important aspects of cinema. Filmmaker Dipankar Dipon has summarised the interview for the readers of the Views Bangladesh.
