Bangladesh’s new government has launched a sweeping redesign of the country’s passports, reviving the controversial “Valid for all countries except Israel” clause and removing several historical and cultural watermarks associated with the previous Awami League administration and the country’s minority religious heritage.
The move has triggered growing debate among political observers, rights advocates, and minority communities, many of whom view the changes as part of a broader ideological transformation unfolding in Bangladesh since the political upheaval of August 2024.
Most controversially, authorities are reportedly removing the image of the historic Kantajew Temple — an 18th-century Hindu temple regarded as one of Bengal’s finest examples of terracotta architecture — while retaining the image of the Sixty Dome Mosque, the UNESCO-recognized Islamic monument dating back to the 15th century.
The decision has intensified concerns among minority communities and secular activists, who argue that Bangladesh’s tradition of religious pluralism is increasingly under pressure amid the country’s changing political climate.
According to officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the phrase “Valid for all countries except Israel” will gradually return to newly issued passports after having been removed in 2020 during the introduction of electronic passports.
Officials said the move was intended to align with Bangladesh’s longstanding policy supporting Palestinian statehood and prevailing domestic sentiment regarding Israel.
Bangladesh has no diplomatic relations with Israel, and successive governments have maintained restrictions on travel to the country. However, critics argue that restoring the explicit wording on passports signals a sharper ideological shift under the current administration.
At the same time, the government is overhauling the visual identity of Bangladesh passports by replacing a series of internal watermark images. Several landmarks associated with the Awami League era and the legacy of Bangladesh’s founding leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman are reportedly being removed.
Among the images slated for removal are the historic residence at Dhanmondi 32, Bangabandhu’s mausoleum at Tungipara, the Mujibnagar Memorial, the Bangabandhu Bridge, the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Novo Theatre, and the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.
An interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus came to power after weeks of violent anti-government movements culminated in the removal of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Aug. 5, 2024. Following the Feb. 12, 2026 election — in which the Awami League was barred from contesting — power transitioned to a new BNP-led government, while Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami emerged as the main parliamentary opposition.
The political transition was followed by widespread unrest and retaliatory violence across parts of the country. Human rights organizations documented hundreds of deaths and thousands of attacks during the turbulent period. Minority groups and rights activists alleged that Hindu communities, Awami League supporters, and secular activists faced targeted violence, intimidation, and destruction of homes and businesses in the aftermath of the uprising.
Critics and minority rights advocates say anti-minority rhetoric and sectarian polarization have increased since the Islamist-backed uprising of August 2024, raising fears about the long-term future of Bangladesh’s secular political identity.
The new passport design will reportedly introduce images linked to the 2024 movement, including a widely circulated photograph of Abu Sayeed standing with outstretched arms during protests in Rangpur — an image supporters of the uprising regard as one of the movement’s defining symbols.
Additional new watermark designs are expected to include traditional cultural motifs such as Jamdani sarees, hilsa fish, jackfruit, and natural landmarks including Tanguar Haor, Madhabkunda Waterfall, Ahsan Manzil, and the National Martyrs’ Memorial.
Some longstanding national symbols — including the Bengal tiger, water lily, Shaheed Minar, and the Sixty Dome Mosque — will remain in the new passport design.
Home Secretary Monjur Morshed Chowdhury confirmed the redesign initiative, telling local media that several existing watermarks were being removed while new ones were being introduced. He said final approval was expected from the government’s highest levels before implementation begins nationwide.
The changes come amid broader efforts by the current authorities to reshape state institutions and national narratives after the political transition of 2024. Critics argue that removing symbols associated with Bangladesh’s liberation-era leadership risks erasing important elements of the country’s secular and multicultural history.
Minority rights activists have also expressed alarm over what they describe as a narrowing of public space for non-Muslim identity and heritage in Bangladesh. They point to attacks on temples, minority-owned businesses, and politically motivated intimidation since the change in government as evidence of increasing polarization.
Bangladesh’s Hindu population, which once accounted for a significantly larger share of the country’s demographics before and after Partition, now makes up roughly 8 percent of the population. Community leaders have repeatedly warned about migration pressures, land disputes, communal violence, and declining representation in public life.
Political analysts say the passport redesign is more than an administrative update. Instead, they argue, it represents a symbolic contest over the future identity of Bangladesh — whether the country will continue to uphold the secular and pluralist principles embedded in its liberation history or move toward a more explicitly majoritarian political culture.
As the new passports move toward final approval, the controversy surrounding the redesign is likely to become another flashpoint in Bangladesh’s deeply polarized political landscape.
