Islamization in Bangladesh

Islamization (Bengali: ইসলামীকরণ, romanized: Islāmīkôrôṇ) refers to the historical and ongoing process through which Islamic principles, values, and institutions have influenced Bangladesh's legal framework, education system, politics, and social norms. Its proponents have argued that the post-independence government had excluded religious voice and the Islamistright and attempts to remove secularism are a counter-hegemonic response to decades of perceived ideological exclusion.

Bangladesh was originally founded in 1971 as a secular republic grounded in the ideals of secular Bengali nationalism. However, beginning in the late 1970s, successive regimes have incrementally integrated Islamic elements into the state apparatus. Rooted in Bangladesh's experience as part of Muslim-majority Pakistan and shaped by broader pan-Islamist sentiments, the push for Islamization gained momentum under Ziaur Rahman and intensified under Hussain Muhammad Ershad, who declared Islam the state religion in 1988. Today, Islam continues to play a prominent role in Bangladeshi society, law, and politics, often generating debate over the balance between secularism and religious identity in the nation's governance and public life.