Badiuzzaman Bay

OF MAGIC & MADNESS

Badiuzzaman Bay is Assistant Editor, The Daily Star. He can be reached at badiuzzaman.bd@gmail.com

BNP faces the weight of history and expectations

For all its pro-reform posturing, BNP has yet to signal a real willingness to lead political reforms, including within itself.

2m ago

The new age demands a re-reading of Bangabandhu

Bangabandhu as a subject of study should be approached with an openness to embrace truths, however unflattering.

3m ago

The nine lives of a corrupt public servant

Let's delve into the hypothetical lifelines in a public servant’s career that help them indulge in corruption.

4m ago

Cow running amok in a shopping mall: It’s not a ‘moo’ point

Animals in Bangladesh are losing their homes because people are taking over their spaces.

5m ago

The only budget I care about is one that reduces my bills

Budget day is turning into our very own Groundhog Day.

6m ago

Citizen data server? More like a data supermarket

It's frightening to think citizens' private data is being sold through hundreds of social media pages and groups

6m ago

Why does a six-day holiday feel too good to be true?

This is apparently the longest holiday that journalists have ever gotten in the history of Bangladesh’s newspaper industry.

7m ago

Who will restrain prices in the month of restraint?

If the government really wants to control or bring down prices during Ramadan and afterwards, it must be willing to go after its 'own people.'

9m ago
February 3, 2024
February 3, 2024

‘There’s a huge difference between DSA and CSA’

Mohammad Ali Arafat, the newly appointed state minister for information and broadcasting, in an exclusive interview with The Daily Star.

January 12, 2024
January 12, 2024

Word of the Election Year: Dummy

Politicians provided a steady supply of obnoxious, potentially title-winning examples

January 4, 2024
January 4, 2024

Can BNP survive the pre-election meltdown?

BNP's retreat to the back foot amid mass arrests and convictions was as remarkable as it was rapid.

December 29, 2023
December 29, 2023

Voters without choice are just glorified dummies

You’ve already met the dummy candidates, aka independents. Now, meet dummy voters.

December 13, 2023
December 13, 2023

How to make dissenters out of citizens

Awami League has always found justification in the Nietzschean theory of cultivating or “inventing” enemies

November 16, 2023
November 16, 2023

Polls schedule is not a cut-off point for dialogue

Without political reconciliations, we're headed for another violent, one-sided election

November 9, 2023
November 9, 2023

Who are these nameless, faceless arsonists?

These attacks are at once a political issue, a law enforcement issue, and a human rights issue.

November 2, 2023
November 2, 2023

Can bureaucrats be neutral in a win-or-lose-all battle?

Let me put it another way: is a fair election possible even if Awami League “allows” it?

October 9, 2023
October 9, 2023

Soft openings, hard politics

As the political landscape heats up in anticipation of the general election, the ruling Awami League seems to be pulling out all the stops

August 17, 2023
August 17, 2023

Road safety, transport politics, and a curious policy U-turn

The latest policy rollover on unfit vehicles seems to be the result of our policymakers remembering that they have interests to protect.