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The Print
27-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
Bangladesh Army Chief wants elections. Muhammad Yunus wants to get rid of him
'Bangladesh needs political stability. This is only possible through an elected government, not by unelected decision-makers,' one source quoted the army chief as saying in an Officers' Address. On 22 May, The Daily Star , Bangladesh's highest-selling English newspaper, reported that Chief of Army Staff General Waker-Uz-Zaman said the national election should be held by December this year, 'according to three sources with direct knowledge of his remarks made at a high-level gathering in Dhaka cantonment'. Among military chiefs in the Indian subcontinent, Bangladesh Army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman must have the most unenviable job right now. While his Pakistan counterpart Asim Munir has been elevated to Field Marshal after a military confrontation with India, General Waker-Uz-Zaman risks losing his job. Or worse. His one big mistake? Saying that the national election be held by December this year so that Bangladesh can return to being an electoral democracy. This was not the first time the General had spoken about the national election. The Daily Star report mentioned an event marking the National Martyred Army Day at Raowa Club on 25 February this year, where the General was quoted as saying—'Every time I spoke with Dr Yunus, I completely agreed with him that there should be a free, fair, and inclusive election and that the election should be held within December or close to that.' Soon after, reports that Muhammad Yunus, caretaker to the interim government in Bangladesh, was mulling resignation came out. 'He (Yunus) said he is thinking about it (resignation). He feels that the situation is such that he cannot work,' Nahid Islam, student-led National Citizen Party chief, said on the night of 22 May, after a meeting with Yunus. Two days later, on 24 May, it was clarified that Yunus would remain as the head of Bangladesh's interim government by an adviser in his cabinet. Former High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Veena Sikri claimed that the speculation about Yunus resigning was 'complete drama' to distract from the Bangladesh Army chief's statement on elections. 'He had no intention of resigning at all, and in fact, he never said himself that he would resign,' the former High Commissioner said in an interview. But this 'complete drama' generated hate towards Yunus's perceived detractors, the main target being General Waker-Uz-Zaman. Students, radicals, and some of Bangladesh's most popular and influential YouTubers openly attacked the army chief. Bangladeshi journalist Sahidul Hasan Khokon told ThePrint that both the student-led, newly formed political party National Citizen Party and the Islamist political outfit Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami have been busy channelising mob rage against General Waker. 'The local media is not reporting this, but the mob is ready. If need be, there will be violent street protests against the Army, like there were during the July revolution against Hasina when the mob turned against the police and killed many policemen,' Hasan said. Hasan added that Jamaat had got a free rein ever since Yunus took over and the new student's party will need more time to organise itself. Hence, December polls, as suggested by General Waker, would suit neither of them. Meanwhile, some of Bangladesh's most influential YouTubers, such as Elias Hossain and Pinaki Bhattacharya, have been busy drumming up support for Yunus and channelising hate against General Waker. In a video that has now gone viral, Hossain said that even if General Waker prays five times a day, it will be in vain as he became a kafir the day Hasina made him the Army chief. There have been speculations about 'foreign hands' that are firmly in support of Yunus during his hour of need. Foreign affairs commentator and Bangladesh specialist Ayanjit Sen told ThePrint that Yunus has support not only from within but outside the country as well. 'Apart from the strong presence and regular interference of the ISI in dictating Bangladesh's foreign and internal policy decisions, the role of China cannot be ruled out. Remember, China was the first country Yunus visited after taking oath as caretaker, and there has been a surge of Chinese business setups inside Bangladesh now,' Sen said, adding China wouldn't want to deal with a new Bangladeshi premier since Yunus has been working in their interest. Also read: Muhammad Yunus wants women's rights in Bangladesh. First rein in Islamic radicals The Hasina stain With so many pressure groups working for Yunus and against him, these are difficult days for General Waker-Uz-Zaman. In January this year, there were reports of a pro-Islamist senior officer in the Bangladesh army, Lieutenant General Mohammad Faizur Rahman, plotting a coup. Though it hasn't taken place yet, General Waker has had to fend off criticism ever since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on 5 August last year. The main reason for that is General Waker is related to Hasina. The four-star general is a distant relative—his mother-in-law Sarhanaz, was a first cousin of Hasina's father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. General Waker-uz-Zaman's father-in-law, General Mustafizur Rahman, served as the 9th Army chief of Bangladesh from December 1997 to December 2000 during Hasina's first tenure as Prime Minister. His family ties with Hasina have made General Waker a target of hate campaigns. Bangladeshi political columnist SM Faiyaz Hossain told ThePrint that when the Army chief starts sounding more democratic than a Nobel Peace Prize winner, you know Bangladesh's political theatre has become a stage for satire. 'The country will do well to hear what General Waker has to say. But who is listening!' he said. Deep Halder is an author and a contributing editor at ThePrint. He tweets @deepscribble. Views are personal. (Edited by Theres Sudeep)
The Print
26-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
Bangladesh govt employees vow to continue their protest against new service law
According to media reports, employees of various ministries and offices continued their sit-in and protest marches under a banner called Bangladesh Secretariat Officers and Employees Coordination Council inside the compound, protesting the promulgation and enforcement of the Public Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025. The protest at the secretariat, which houses ministries and important government offices, virtually paralysed the central administration for the third consecutive day on Monday. Dhaka/New Delhi, May 26 (PTI) Hundreds of government employees in Bangladesh on Monday vowed to continue their protest at the secretariat and urged their colleagues to stage nationwide demonstrations against a new service law which allows easier dismissal of officials for misconduct. They urged officials and employees across the country to hold demonstrations on Tuesday against the 'repressive' and 'black law'. Hasnat Abdullah, a prominent leader of the student-led National Citizen Party (NCP) formed with Muhammad Yunus' blessings in February, warned the government employees against the protests, saying, 'We will firmly resist it with the people's support'. Abdullah, a key leader of the Students Against Discrimination movement that ousted then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League regime last year, apparently referred protesters as collaborators of the deposed premier. 'Today, there are protests at the secretariat. NBR's (National Board of Revenue) reform processes are also being obstructed. Yet during the July mass uprising, these same people wore black badges and worked in offices supporting Sheikh Hasina,' he said. On Monday, hundreds of government employees briefly locked the secretariat's main gate. The agitating employees gathered near the main entrance around 12:30 pm. During that time, the gate was closed. It was reopened about half an hour later, around 1:00 pm. The protesting employees moved from the gate and gathered in a scattered way across the secretariat premises. The authorities deployed extra police to enforce a vigil against any possible violence at the complex. Also, the protest by employees of the Dhaka South City Corporation, demanding the installation of BNP leader Ishraque Hossain as its mayor in line with a court order, has paralysed administrative services. The election commission preferred not to oppose the verdict, but the interim government on Monday challenged the ruling in the High Court to debar Hossain's swearing-in and allow an administrator appointed by the government to discharge the mayor's duties. Meanwhile, the army on Monday came up with a clarification amid reports of discord between the civil and military leadership over the possible timeline for holding the elections and other policy issues related to security affairs, particularly involving a proposed humanitarian corridor to Myanmar's rebel-held Rakhine state. Bangladesh Army's operations director Brigadier General M Nazim-ud-Daula said the military was not at odds with the interim government but was determined to play its role in safeguarding the country's independence and sovereignty. 'We (the government and army) are working to help each other. There is no scope to misinterpret it,' he told reporters. He, however, added that there would be 'no compromise when it comes to the country's independence, security and sovereignty'. Daula added: 'The issue involving the corridor is highly sensitive. For the army, national interest comes first'. Army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman along with the Navy and Air Force chiefs met Yunus last week and reportedly reiterated their call for election by December this year to allow an elected government to take charge. They also conveyed their reservation about the corridor issue. The next day, Gen Zaman held a senior officers meeting at Dhaka Cantonment and said he was unaware of the government's several strategic decisions despite the military's active role. The military also decided to be tough against rampant incidents of 'mob justice'. 'Bangladesh needs political stability. This is only possible through an elected government, not by unelected decision-makers,' the Daily Star newspaper quoted Zaman as saying during an 'officers' address' in which he delivered a 30-minute speech, followed by more than an hour of questions and answers. According to reports, the army chief also voiced concern about making other decisions without an electoral mandate – including the potential foreign management of Chattogram Port, Bangladesh's main seaport, and the launch of Starlink, Elon Musk's satellite internet service – which he said could compromise national security. A sense of unease has intensified in Bangladesh for the past few days amid protests in the civil administration and business sector over the policies of the Yunus-led interim government. The apex Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries and other business chambers Sunday convened a press conference to review the worrisome situation in the business arena. A prominent business community leader Showkat Aziz Russell told the presser that businessmen were being killed just like the intellectuals in the 1971 Liberation War. He warned of famine-like situation as more people become jobless. 'We don't know how we will pay bonuses and salaries to workers ahead of Eid-ul-Adha,' said Russell, the president of Bangladesh Textiles Mills Association (BTMA). PTI AR ZH ZH This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
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First Post
26-05-2025
- Politics
- First Post
Bangladesh: Resignation, threats & more, 3 tactics Yunus is using to save his seat amid pressure for elections
From mulling a resignation to threatening 'public action,' here are three tactics Bangladesh's Interim Chief Adviser is using to save his seat amid growing pressure to hold elections in the country read more From mulling resignation to threatening 'public action', Bangladesh's Interim Adviser Muhammad Yunus used all his cards to deal with the growing pressure to hold elections in the country. On August 7, 2024, Yunus was appointed as the country's chief adviser after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government was toppled following violent protests. However, Yunus's long stay in power is making many uncomfortable with country's army and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), calling for elections. While Yunus emphasised that elections can be conducted only in 2026 after the country implements reforms, both political parties and the Bangladeshi army has been asking the Nobel laureate to hold the elections by the end of this year. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Yunus has been using several tactics to navigate through these rough waters. For starters, he expressed his desire to step down, then he threatened 'public action,' indicating a similar kind of protest that took over Bangladesh last year. When all hell broke loose, he dragged India into his own political disasters and blamed it on a so-called 'conspiracy'. Tactic 1 - Mulling a resignation Last week, reports started to emerge that the Bangladeshi chief advisor is considering resigning from his post because he is finding it difficult to work amid pressure. According to Bangladeshi media reports, Yunus lamented how political parties in the country are failing to reach a common ground to bring a change in the country. Amid the reports, student-led National Citizen Party chief Nahid Islam also hinted that Yunus wants to resign. However, he emphasised that the Nobel prize-winning economist 'needs to remain' in the office to ensure a peaceful transition of power. 'He (Yunus) said he is thinking about it (resignation). He feels that the situation is such that he cannot work,' Islam said in a conversation with BBC News on Thursday night after he met the 84-year-old leader. However, the reports of Yunus's resignation were put to bed after the interim government's planning adviser, Wahiduddin Mahmud , told reporters after the meeting at the NEC conference room in Dhaka that Yunus had not expressed any intention to step down. 'The chief adviser is staying with us. He has not said he will resign, and all other advisers will also continue. We are here to carry out the responsibilities entrusted to us,' Mahmud was quoted as saying by Bangladeshi news outlet Prothom Alo. Tactic 2 - Issuing threats of public protests After the threat to resign did not reduce the pressure on the Yunus administration, the Bangladeshi chief adviser issued a sharp warning against what he described as 'unreasonable demands' made by the country's army. He insisted that he would not hesitate to take decisions backed by public support if the transitional government's autonomy is challenged. The remarks from Yunus came during an unscheduled meeting of the Advisory Council, which was held on Saturday. 'If any actions obstruct the government's autonomy, reform efforts, judicial processes, free and fair elections, or normal functioning…the government will take the necessary decisions in consultation with the people,' read a statement from Yunus' office after the meeting. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While some saw the chief adviser's remarks as firm support for reforms, many considered it a threat to the BNP and Bangladesh's Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman , who has made a firm call to hold elections by December this year. Tactic 3 - Drag India into your problems While the pressure still continued, Yunus went on to blame the ongoing political turmoil on a 'conspiracy' to re-establish 'Indian hegemony' in Bangladesh. After a meeting with Yunus, on Sunday, Nagorik Oikya president Mahmudur Rahman Manna said that Yunus believes that pro-India conspirators are creating a turmoil in the country. 'For this reason, Yunus believes that the entire nation needs to be united,' Manna told reporters after the meeting. 'He (Yunus) started the discussion by saying that we are in a big crisis. By this crisis, he spoke about the conspiracy of Indian hegemony. Indian hegemony does not want to accept this change in us at all. If possible, they want to destroy us in one day and for that, they are doing everything they need to do. These were his words,' he added. During the meeting with different political party leaders, Yunus emphasised that a 'war-like situation' emerged both inside and outside the country ever since the transitional government imposed a ban on former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's party, Awami League. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'A war-like situation emerged both inside and outside the country, preventing us from moving forward, causing everything to collapse, and pushing us back into subservience,' Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam quoted Prof Yunus as saying during the meeting, Bangladeshi news outlet The Daily Star reported. These three instances reflect how Yunus is trying to use all tactics to save his seat, and Bangladesh remains in turmoil and hopes for polls in the country look bleaker. With inputs from PTI.
Scroll.in
25-05-2025
- Business
- Scroll.in
Muhammad Yunus to continue as Bangladesh interim government chief, says adviser
Muhammad Yunus will continue as the head of Bangladesh's interim government, PTI quoted an adviser in his cabinet as having said on Saturday. This came two days after one of his key allies claimed that Yunus had been considering his resignation. 'He [Yunus] did not say he will leave,' Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud told reporters after an unscheduled meeting of the advisory council. 'He said that while we face many obstacles in carrying out the work and responsibilities assigned to us, we are overcoming them.' Stating that Yunus was 'definitely staying', Mahmud added that none of the advisers were going anywhere as 'the responsibility entrusted to us is a significant one; we cannot abandon this duty'. Yunus, a Nobel laureate economist, took over as chief adviser of Bangladesh's interim government three days after Sheikh Hasina resigned as the prime minister and fled to India on August 5. Hasina fled after several weeks of widespread student-led protests against her Awami League government. On Thursday, Yunus told leaders from the student-led National Citizen Party that he was mulling resignation because he felt that 'the situation is such that he cannot work', PTI reported. He cited difficulties in working amid the failure of political parties to find common ground for change. Following this, Members of the advisory council joined an abruptly called closed-door meeting on Saturday after a scheduled meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council at the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area in Dhaka. Later in the day, the advisory council stated that the two-hour-long meeting included detailed discussions on 'three primary responsibilities entrusted to the interim government – elections, reforms and justice'. The statement read: 'The council discussed how unreasonable demands, deliberately provocative and jurisdictionally overreaching statements, and disruptive programmes have been continuously obstructing the normal functioning environment and creating confusion and suspicion among the public.' The advisory council believed that a broader unity was essential to maintain national stability, organise free and fair elections, justice and reform, and permanently prevent the return of authoritarianism in the country, it added. The council also stated that the interim government would listen to the views of political parties and clarify its position on the matter. 'The interim government continued to fulfil its responsibilities by putting national interests above group interests despite all obstacles,' it added. 'However, if – under the instigation of defeated forces or as part of a foreign conspiracy – the performance of these responsibilities becomes impossible, the government will present all reasons to the public and then take the necessary steps with the people.' The interim government upholds the public expectations of the July Uprising,' said the council. 'But if the government's autonomy, reform efforts, justice process, fair election plan, and normal operations are obstructed to the point of making its duties unmanageable, it will, with the people, take the necessary steps.' The development comes amid reports of tension between the interim government and the country's military over a possible timeline for holding the parliamentary elections, PTI reported. The discord also allegedly arises from a policy issue related to Bangladesh's security affairs involving a proposed humanitarian corridor of aid channel to Myanmar's rebel-held Rakhine state. Hold polls by December: Bangladesh Nationalist Party Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Saturday asked Yunus' interim government to hold the parliamentary elections by December, PTI reported. It also called for the reconstitution of Yunus' cabinet by removing 'controversial advisers'. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party has emerged as a key player in the political arena after Hasina's Awami League was ousted in August. 'We have called for completing the reforms quickly and holding the national election by December,' the news agency quoted Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, a member of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party's highest policy-making standing committee, after meeting the chief adviser.
The Star
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Minister says Yunus ‘not going to ‘step down'
Muhammad Yunus 'needs to remain' in office as interim leader to ensure a peaceful transition of power, said a cabinet member and special adviser to Yunus. Yunus, the 84-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner who took over after a mass uprising last year, had threatened to quit if parties did not give him their backing, a political ally said. The South Asian nation has been in political turmoil since the student-led revolt that toppled then-prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024. 'For the sake of Bangladesh and a peaceful democratic transition, Professor Yunus needs to remain in office,' Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, a special assistant to Yunus, said in a post on Facebook. 'The Chief Adviser is not going to step down,' he added. 'He does not hanker after power.' He later deleted his post. Yunus's reported threat to stand down came after thousands of supporters of the powerful Bangladesh Nationa list Party (BNP) rallied in Dhaka on Wednesday, holding large-scale protests against the interim government for the first time. Yunus has promised polls will be held by June 2026 at the latest. But supporters of the BNP demanded he fix a date. Yunus's relationship with the military has also reportedly deteriorated. Army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman said on Wednesday that elections should be held by December, warning that Bangladesh was in a 'chaotic phase' and that the 'situation is worsening by the day'. Taiyeb issued a warning to the army on Friday. 'The army can't meddle in politics,' he wrote. 'The army doesn't do that in any civilised country.' The army played a decisive role in ending Hasina's rule by not stepping in to quash the uprising, after at least 1,400 protesters were killed in a police crackdown. The army issued a statement late aimed to combat those seeking to create divisions between the military and the public. It also released a list of the hundreds of people it had briefly sheltered in army bases in the chaotic days following Hasina's ouster 'to save them from extrajudicial killings'. The National Citizen Party (NCP) – made up of many of the students who led the uprising against Hasina, and a group close to Yunus – had accused the army of supporting Hasina's Awami League party. Hasina, 77, remains in self-imposed exile in India, where she has defied an arrest warrant to face trial for crimes against humanity related to the police crackdown. — AFP
