Regime changes in Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka were due to poor governance: Doval

National Security Adviser Ajit Doval said “poor governance” was the reason behind the insurgencies that have led to changes in governments in Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka over the past three-and-a-half years.

Delivering his Sardar Patel Memorial Lecture on governance on the occasion of National Unity Day on Friday (October 31, 2025), Mr Doval said governance plays an “important role” in the “nation-building process” and in securing the nation-state.

“The rise and fall of the great empires, monarchies, oligarchies, aristocracies and democracies is actually a history of their governance. In the recent cases of regime change through non-constitutional methods in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and others, these have actually been cases of bad governance,” Mr Doval said while talking about the changes that have swept India’s neighbors in recent years.

His comments on the district came shortly after former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged her supporters in the Awami League to boycott the February 2026 elections in Bangladesh, currently led by an interim government led by Nobel laureate Mohammed Yunus.

“I believe that governance plays a crucial role in the process of nation building, as well as in securing a nation and helping it achieve its goals and ambitions,” Mr Doval said, citing examples of the rise and fall of empires due to internal weaknesses and inept governance.