Slightly over a year after their alleged involvement in events leading to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina regime, the International Republican Institute (IRI) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI) have reportedly become active again in Bangladesh. Intelligence sources indicate that both organisations have re-engaged in political activities, focusing on election-related programmes in coordination with US officials.

According to intelligence reports, four IRI officials and one NDI representative met on Monday with US diplomats in Dhaka, including Chargé d’Affaires Tracey Ann Jacobson and Political-Economic Counsellor Eric Geelan.

The discussions reportedly centred around election training and observation programmes, signalling that the Mohammad Yunus-led interim government may soon take steps toward holding the national elections scheduled for February 2026.

Former US national security official’s involvement

A key participant in the meetings was Lisa Curtis, former Deputy Assistant to the US President and Senior Director at the National Security Council (NSC) from 2017 to 2021.

Curtis, who currently serves as Director of the Indo-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), has long been a prominent voice on South and Southeast Asian affairs.

Intelligence officials allege that Curtis had played an “instrumental role” in coordinating the student movement and Jamaat-e-Islami during the mid-2024 events that led to the Hasina regime’s fall.

Other participants in the meeting

Alongside Curtis, the IRI delegation reportedly included Jessica Keegan, Senior Adviser (Electoral Integrity), Stephen Cima, Resident Program Director (Philippines), Darin Anthony Bielecki, Program Director and James John Fluharty, Programme Coordinator.

The NDI was represented by Jami Sachs Spykerman, Program Director (Asia-Pacific).

Earlier this week, the IRI delegation also met leaders of the National Citizens Party (NCP) — a new political organisation formed by student activists who led the protests that toppled the Hasina government and paved the way for the current interim administration.

Alleged role in 2024 regime change

Reports from 2024 had already highlighted IRI and NDI’s alleged roles in supporting the student-led uprising that resulted in Hasina’s ouster. Between 2023 and early 2024, representatives of these organisations frequently visited Bangladesh, ostensibly to monitor the political climate ahead of the January 7, 2024 elections, which saw Hasina’s Awami League win a fourth consecutive term. However, the situation changed dramatically months later, when mass protests erupted, forcing Hasina to flee to India in August 2024.

IRI’s wider regional footprint

The IRI’s activities are not confined to Bangladesh. Intelligence officers claim that between 2020 and 2024, the organisation also spent substantial funds in Nepal, conducting training programmes for youth and civil society groups prior to the mass movements that led to the fall of the K. P. Sharma Oli government.

With renewed activity by US-affiliated organisations and the interim government’s election preparations underway, regional political observers are watching Bangladesh’s volatile political landscape closely.

Analysts believe the upcoming 2026 polls may serve as a key test for Dhaka’s democratic transition — and for Washington’s influence in South Asia’s shifting power dynamics.

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