New Delhi, June 6 -- Bangladesh's ongoing crisis-sparked by student protests and deepened by military intervention-marks one of the country's most significant democratic regressions toward a praetorian state since the 1980s. The student protests of July 2024, triggered by a 30% job quota for descendants of 1971 freedom fighters-seen by many as favoritism towards Awami League loyalists-ignited widespread unrest. Authoritarian governance only added fuel to the fire, leading to mass protests, injuries, and deaths.

In this context, the military forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and go into exile. In August 2024, an interim government under Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus was installed-signaling Bangladesh's slide toward praetoriani...