Bangladesh's 13th parliamentary elections have concluded, and Tarique Rahman is now poised to become the country's next prime minister. Whether this signals the continuation of dynastic politics or the fading of Gen Z's political aspirations is not the focus of this piece.

In the days before the vote and immediately after the results, Pakistani television channels and a visible number of seasoned anchors as well as younger YouTubers offered sweeping commentary.

A 40-member Pakistani media delegation travelled to Dhaka, was hosted at Pakistan House by High Commissioner Imran Haider, and received briefings on the evolving political climate and prospects for a bilateral reset.

The coverage was energetic, confident, and at moments celebratory.

Tarique Rahman was repeatedly introduced to Pakistani audiences through a familiar frame: the son of a decorated Pakistan Army officer, a Hilal-e-Jurat recipient from the 1965 war. It is factually correct that his father, Ziaur Rahman, fought in that conflict and received the award. But history does not pause at 1965.

The same officer later announced Bangladesh's declaration of independence and became central to the political order that emerged from the dismemberment of Pakistan.

Many observers including scholars outside our community argue that his later role in the "liberation movement" placed him in direct opposition to the state he once served, and they associate elements of that period with documented violence against pro-Pakistan civilians in what was then East Pakistan. Even raising the question of whether those events constitute genocide........

© The Express Tribune