Distinguished Professor Ali Riaz has published a book chapter on the interplay of religion and politics in Bangladesh. The chapter, “More Than Meets the Eye: The Narratives of Secularism and Islam in Bangladesh,” is published in an edited volume: Ghosts from the Past?
The chapter challenges the popular perception that Bangladesh has become the latest battleground between secularism and Islam and problematizes the simplified understanding and the binarization of religion and secularism in Bangladesh. Riaz argues that extant discussions on the one hand overlook the historical background of the interactions of religion while ignoring the extant multiplicity of both Islamic practices and the understanding of secularism. The author calls for a nuanced understanding of the complex historical and contemporaneous developments regarding relationships between religion and politics.
The volume, edited by Neeti Nair, Michael Kugelman, and Bijan Omrani, is published by Routledge.
