The former military dictator Mohammad Ershad should hear today if he is guilty of not declaring gifts worth $250,000 while he ruled between 1983 and 1990. But a jail sentence is not expected. The two heads of rival political dynasties, Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia, have used legal charges to secure the strongman’s loyalty since his ousting in 1990. The 87-year-old remains wildly popular in northern Bangladesh, where his Jatiya Party, the country’s third-largest, controls useful seats. His party is the main parliamentary opposition, and he serves as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s “special adviser”, legitimising her Awami League’s de facto one-party rule. India, the local superpower, wants the next contest between the two personality cults—the election in 2019—to look credible, unlike the farce in 2014. For that Mr Ershad (and Mrs Zia) must be out of jail. A political career built on siding with the winner continues.
