There is a recurring lesson in political history, one that parties learn too late and nations pay for dearly: dynasties rot faster than institutions. When power becomes inheritance, judgment withers. Bangladesh’s Awami League is now living that lesson in real time, pushed not by external enemies but by the calculated recklessness of Sajeeb Wazed Joy. Far from rescuing his party after Sheikh Hasina’s exit, Joy is steering its supporters toward confusion, fragmentation, and political chaos—while mistaking noise for leadership.

Sheikh Hasina’s quiet withdrawal from active politics should have prompted introspection inside the Awami League. Instead, it produced a vacuum filled by the least prepared figure imaginable. Joy’s ascent was not the result of party consensus, electoral legitimacy, or grassroots trust. It was the byproduct of dynastic reflex—the assumption that lineage substitutes for competence. History suggests otherwise. Indira Gandhi learned it the hard way after empowering Sanjay. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is still learning it in Manila. Bangladesh is now being forced to learn it under Joy.

The first damage is internal. The Awami League is not a startup that can be managed from abroad through Zoom calls and press interviews. It is a mass-based party with deep rural networks, factional balances, and ideological baggage accumulated over seven decades. Joy has none of the instincts required to manage this ecosystem. He lacks grassroots credibility, political seasoning, even linguistic fluency that signals belonging. Leadership in Bangladesh is tactile. Joy’s politics is virtual.

Into this deficit he has poured accusation and alarmism. From the safety of the United States, Joy has portrayed Bangladesh as a country on the brink—elections rigged in advance, militants roaming freely,........

© Blitz