Bangladesh's Contentious Path Toward Elections

In the latest setback for Bangladesh's largest and most powerful Islamist party, the Bangladeshi Supreme Court rejected Jamaat-e-Islami's Aug. 5 plea against the High Court's Aug. 1 ruling banning the organization from future elections. So far this year, Bangladesh has experienced significant social and political upheaval as a series of war crimes tribunals relating to the 1971 war for independence have coincided with intensifying competition between the country's two traditional political forces: the incumbent Awami League and the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party. The Supreme Court's decision to ban Jamaat-e-Islami from the political process will have immediate consequences for Bangladesh's political and social stability, and undermining a key element of the country's political opposition could trigger unintended long-term consequences for the ruling Awami League.