Bangladesh’s increasingly hardline religious currents pose deep social challenges

Singapore's recent repatriation of two Bangladeshi construction workers in early July over extremist social media posts has reignited scrutiny into the increasing visibility of hardline religious ideas within Bangladesh. The cases echo the 2025 arrest of 36 Bangladeshi migrant workers in Malaysia for suspected Islamic State links and a nationwide terror alert issued by Bangladesh police in April 2026. Upon their arrival in Dhaka on July 8, the two repatriated workers were detained by Bangladeshi police. A Dhaka court has placed them in police custody pending investigations into their alleged links to militant organizations, according to State Prosecutor Muhammad Shamsud Doha. Specific organizations have not yet been named, and no judicial determinations have been made.

Singapore's Internal Security Department (ISD) stated on July 17 that one worker, Tayani Md Risad, 25, had expressed support for radical Islamist writer Shafiur Rahman Farabi. The other, Islam Sahedul, 37, had posted inflammatory comments regarding the Israel-Iran conflict and labeled Muslims who opposed Islamic law as infidels. While the ISD found no evidence of attack plans or terrorist activity in Singapore, they deemed the individuals' views harmful to social cohesion. The increasing visibility of hardline religious rhetoric online and in public life in Bangladesh has been noted since the 2024 uprising that ended former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s rule. This period has created greater political space for Islamist actors.

In May 2025, Islamist groups, notably the influential Hefazat-e-Islam movement, organized large-scale protests against recommendations from the Women’s Affairs Reform Commission. This commission was established by Muhammad Yunus’ interim government during Bangladesh's political transition following Hasina’s ouster. The proposed reforms were ultimately not adopted. Freedom of expression is also facing strain, as evidenced by the February 2025 jailing of poet Sohel Hasan Galib over allegations of blasphemous writing, which led to calls for his killing. Writers and rights groups have condemned this case as a threat to literary freedom.

An April assessment by the International Crisis Group indicated that political uncertainty and weak law enforcement have made extremist mobilization easier, though acts of physical violence have remained infrequent. While there is no broad support for jihadist violence or transnational terrorism, the growing public expression of hardline religious sentiments raises significant societal concerns about unchecked extremist narratives. Asif Bin Ali, a doctoral fellow at Georgia State University, attributes this shift to the re-emergence of views suppressed under Sheikh Hasina’s rule and the dissemination of extremist narratives to new audiences. "I would not say violent extremism has become mainstream," he stated, "But some ideas once confined to the fringes have become more visible and, in some cases, more accepted."

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I would not say violent extremism has become mainstream. But some ideas once confined to the fringes have become more visible and, in some cases, more accepted.