The Department of Law at North South University (NSU) in collaboration with NSU Law & Mooting Society successfully hosted a session of its “Business Law Talks” series, featuring a special lecture on “Law and Economics of Crafting a Budget That May Work for Bangladesh” on 17 May, 2026, a press release said
This insightful discussion was held at the Moot Court Room NAC 616, and convened an audience ranging from students, academics, and legal and economics enthusiasts, keen on learning about the intricate dynamics between finance, law, and governance to engage in meaningful academic discourse. The immersive lecture was delivered by Professor AKM Waresul Karim, the Dean of the School of Business and Economics (SBE) at NSU.
Advocate Saquib Rahman, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Law at NSU moderated the session, shared the introductory remarks, and expressed his sincere gratitude to Professor AKM Waresul Karim for gracing the occasion with his presence and for providing a practical learning session for the attendees. Dr. Md. Rizwanul Islam, Professor of Law and the Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at NSU provided the opening remarks and highlighted the legal aspect and the foundations of the state budgeting and taxation.
Professor AKM Waresul Karim provided the economic, philosophical, and legal, basis of state budgeting, grounding his lecture in John Locke’s social contract theory to explain how citizens surrender property via taxation in exchange for collective security, public welfare, and justice. He then explored the Ability-to-Pay, Benefits Received, and Neutrality theories, alongside Keynesian fiscal theory and Michał Kalecki’s critique of structural unemployment to further deconstruct public finance.
In addition, Professor Karim evaluated Bangladesh’s dire macroeconomic challenges, such as a low tax-to-GDP ratio, rising debt, an over-dependence on indirect taxation, and expanding social safety nets. He simultaneously questioned the moral legitimacy of aggressive taxation in a climate of weak institutional accountability, corruption allegations, and poor delivery of fundamental public goods like healthcare, infrastructure, and clean air. Ultimately, he argued that for a country facing low tax mobilization and institutional distrust, the challenge is not only expanding the budget’s size, but overcoming governance failures to establish a fiscally legitimate, efficient, and welfare-maximizing state.
During the Q&A segment, the audience engaged in a lively discussion with the speaker on various issues concerning the execution of these fiscal reforms and how Bangladesh can realistically pivot toward an equitable economic model.
The Special Guest, Professor Abdur Rob Khan, the honorable Treasurer at NSU, delivered his speech about the incidence of tax, and the impact of taxation on the marginalized and underprivileged people.
Following this, Chief Guest, Professor Nasar U. Ahmed, the honorable Pro-Vice Chancellor of NSU, gave a concise speech about investment on education, terms of equity, and proper allocation of finances in state budgeting.
The program concluded with a group photograph featuring all attendees, commemorating the memorable occasion.
