During a recent visit to Bangladesh, I conducted interviews for a specific purpose. One case of interest was the prolonged legal proceedings surrounding the Rana Plaza tragedy, which began on 24 April 2013. While the Apex court recently instructed the trial court to expedite proceedings and deliver a judgment within six months, only 69 out of 594 witnesses have been examined as of March 2024, raising concerns about the efficiency of the justice system.

Few postwar world order crises have solicited world attention and concern as alarmingly as has the ongoing genocidal mass killings and wanton devastation in Gaza by Israel.

As summer rolls around and our lifestyle changes to adjust to the heat, so do a lot of our books! So here are a few books that might make a good addition to this year’s summer reading list.

In Gemini Wahhaj’s debut novel, The Children of This Madness (7.13 Books, 2023), the follow the lives of engineering professor Nasir Uddin and his daughter Beena, an aspiring PhD candidate living in the US.

Young Bangla, country's largest youth platform, has rolled out a countrywide series of extensive and interactive schemes that aims to raise awareness among communities to reduce man-made causes leading to climate change and cope up adverse impact of climate change

The necessity that was felt a few days after the Declaration of Independence of Bangladesh was that of a Government which could take upon itself the burden of directing the liberation struggle.

The principle of comity of courts is closely connected with the effective and efficient administration of justice throughout the world.

Following the surrender of Pakistani army to Bangladesh on 16 December 1971, after the bloody war of nine months, the ultimate victory was attained.

The Covenant of Water by physician and author Abraham Verghese tells the story of three generations of an Orthodox Saint Thomas Christian family in Kerala. Through suffering and loss, triumphs and victories, the importance of familial ties is examined and supported. In the Kerala of the 1940s, blood ties were sacred, but “family” also meant helpers who worked for you. Members of the three-generational family seem to be under a curse which causes its members to drown in water. The mystical power of water in our lives is explored with precision and sensitivity in the novel.

The title of this book suggests that it is based in Bengal but it really meanders deftly across time and space, more often than not in “mazy motion”.

The Daily Star (TDS): Your family was closely involved with the Liberation War of Bangladesh. Could you please provide some insights into this historical involvement?

Addressing the climate crisis in a way that not only protects the environment and lowers emissions, but also makes the world a more equitable, just, and fair place to live is known as climate justice.

The Copyright Act 2023 brought many significant changes replacing its predecessor- the Copyright Act 2000. One such significant change is the incorporation of the liberal version of the ‘fair use’ provision. This write-up examines the scopes and limitations of this incorporation.

In Bangladesh, a comprehensive study by the Centre for Injury Prevention and Research, Bangladesh (CIPRB) in 2013 found that more than 10,000 people die every year owing to suicide. It is important to note that attempting to commit suicide is a punishable offence under section 309 of the Penal Code, 1860.

I love reading about popular inventions which were originally created with a different purpose in mind. For instance, did you know that bubble wrap, that oh-so-ubiquitous packing material that doubles as a stress-relieving toy, was initially intended to be wallpaper? Imagine that! On the one hand, you have hours and hours of bubble-popping fun. On the other hand, probably a trypophobe’s nightmare, so maybe not. Either way, March Chavannes and Alfred Fielding, the co-inventors of the material, thought they had a dud on their hands until IBM started looking for better packing materials for their delicate new computers. The rest is history.

In Deena Mohamed’s Shubeik Lubeik (originally published in 2015 and translated in 2023 by Mohamed herself), wishes have not only drastically altered the fabric of daily life in Egypt, but the world at large.

Though on its surface Sanya Rushdi’s  Hospital, translated into English by Arunava Sinha and recently longlisted for the 2024 Stella Prize, looks to be a breezy, short read—it is anything but. With her rather flattened, sparse prose, Rushdi has managed to write an enduring piece of autofiction, a compelling account of psychosis that neither sensationalises nor withers away any sentimentality from the struggles of mental health.

A petition to ban elephant cruelty in Bangladesh has sparked much legal and ethical debates. In this write-up, the writer addresses and maps the relevant legal discussions relating to cruelty to elephants, and other animals in general.

In Bangladesh, medical negligence is a day-to-day instance now from wrong diagnoses to surgical failures frequently harming or even killing patients.

In the realm of day-to-day legal matters within private organisations, the traditional practice of appointing in-house legal counsel has been the norm, and a vast number of lawyers and advocates are actively engaged in this domain.