Blasphemy law in Bangladesh allows the state to arrest, trial and imprison any person who has intention of hurting "religious sentiments." While the state does not have any law against apostasy, vigilantism or non-state groups prosecute apostates on their own. Vigilante violence has been an especially acute issue, most notably in the mid-2010s when a string of secularist and atheist bloggers suffered murder and attempted murder at the hands of Islamist extremists.
Bangladesh, originally “West Pakistan,” was under colonial rule until the partition of 1947, during which it became part of the fledgling Pakistani (and officially Islamic) state until its own secession in 1971. The 1972 constitution declared Bangladesh a secular state, but this was quickly undercut by the Proclamation Order of 1977 (Article 8, Clause 1), which removed the secular provision. The secular provision has since been restored, but in the meantime, Islam has been declared the state religion and remains so. More recently, Bangladesh has made headlines as an epicenter for Islamist mob violence, particularly against secular bloggers.
Background
Sunni Muslims make up around 90% of the country's population, the rest Hindus, Christians, Buddhists, Ahmadi Muslims, and Animists. Islam likely emerged in the Bengali region in the 8th century, and facilitated relatively peaceful conversions.
Development of Blasphemy Laws
Islam likely emerged in the Bengali region in the 8th century, and facilitated relatively peaceful conversions. Bangladesh, originally “West Pakistan,” was under colonial rule until the partition of 1947, during which it became part of the fledgling Pakistani (and officially Islamic) state until its own secession in 1971. The 1972 constitution declared Bangladesh a secular state, but this was quickly undercut by the Proclamation Order of 1977 (Article 8, Clause 1), which declared Islam as the state religion. Since then, Bangladesh has made headlines as an epicenter for Islamist mob violence, particularly against secular bloggers.
Since the 13th century, Islam was institutionally backed in then-Bengal since its conquest by Ikhtiaruddin Muhammad Bin Bakhtiar Khiljee, who first established mosques and madrasas. In 1947, British India was partitioned based on a two-nation theory that considered Islam and Hinduism the only salient factors of potential nationhood; Pakistan would be created to fulfill those aspirations for Muslims. However, once partitioned, differences started to stand out between West and East Pakistan--the latter which would eventually become Bangladesh after a brutal nine-month liberation war. This free Bangladesh was founded on secular principles, and Islam took a backseat role to a society largely content to distance itself from the religious nationalism on which the premise of a “united Pakistan” had been based. Article 12 of the 1972 Constitution specified that secularism would be realized by prohibiting “communalism in all forms, state favoring of any religion, tabuse of religion for political purposes.”
Still, independence alone did not guarantee secularism. Firstly, secularization in name alone did not undo the strong public sentiment in favor of Islam. Furthermore, Bangladesh’s dependence on Arab states limited its ability to fully implement secularism. Post-independence, the nascent country went through multiple periods of military intervention, beginning in 1975. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, leader of the independence movement and secular advocate, was murdered with little public outcry. Anti-Indian cabinet member Khandakar Moshtaque Ahmed was installed as president and declared he would lead the country “with the help and mercy of the Almighty Allah.” A second coup on November 3, 1975 ended with Major General Ziaur Rahman in power.
Under Rahman, known as “Zia,” Bangladeshi nationalism and Islamism merged together. In 1977, Zia added the phrase “Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim” [in the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful] at the top of the Constitution, and lifted the ban on religious parties, facilitating the operation of Islamist political parties. Zia’s replacement after assassination in 1981, Hussain Muhammad Ershad, declared that Islam, “the religion of the majority of the population, will be given the highest place in the country’s future constitution and Islamic provisions will be included wherever necessary.” In 1988, the 8th Amendment declared Islam the official state religion.
In 2005, the Supreme Court declared the 1977 removal of secularism from the Constitution illegal, and in 2011, the secular provision was restored. Nevertheless, “Bismillah-ar-Rahman-ar-Rahim” and Islam as the state religion remain.
Recent Developments
From 1991 to 2006, three democratically elected civilian governments ran the country. In January 2007, general elections were interrupted by the imposition of military rule.
In October 2018, parliament passed the Digital Security Act (DSA) criminalizing freedom of expression and freedom of religion or belief online. Article 28 of the law prohibits “Publication, Broadcast, etc. of such information in any website or in any electronic format that hampers the religious sentiment or values.”