New Delhi: Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government, has indicated that he could lead the country for at least four years as “reforms will take time”—giving the first suggestion of his expected tenure Sunday.
His remarks come at a time when it is popularly believed that he is just leading an interim government and will call for elections soon.
In an interview with Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera, published on the 100th day since he assumed power as head of the interim government, Yunus also asserted that the reports of attacks in Bangladesh against Hindus and other minorities—highlighted by US President-elect Donald Trump in his Diwali greetings late last month—were “propaganda” arising from India.
“New Bangladesh is not going to come through just holding an election… it means reforms of the legal system… it means the police system [will be] freshly designed and it needs most of all the reform of the Constitution,” said Yunus.
In response to a question on his tenure, he said: “There are two parallel things going on—one is the preparation for the election and the other is the preparation of all the reforms. It is up to the people, up to the political parties to decide which way to go… we are not a perpetual government. The regular government is for five years. The new Constitution may say four years because people want a faster term of government. So it should be under four years, it may be less, it is all a question of what people want.”
The only Nobel laureate from Bangladesh evaded questions on a specific end to his tenure, but added that “four years is the maximum one can draw”. The reasoning put forth by Yunus for the length of time was that the various commissions appointed by the interim government will take time to file suggestions for reforms.
Former prime minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina was ousted from office in August this year, following months-long protests by students against the quota system for government jobs in the country. In June, the Bangladesh High Court had reintroduced a 30 percent quota for families of veterans from the 1971 Liberation War, which was scrapped by Hasina’s government in 2018.
The protests eventually led to Hasina fleeing the country for India, where she remains. In the aftermath of the protests in Bangladesh, reports indicated a number of violent incidents aimed at Hindus living in the country, estimated to be 8 per cent of the population.
‘Propaganda from Indian side’
Yunus conceded that minorities including Hindus did face incidents of violence in the aftermath of the protests in Bangladesh, but said this was not because of their religious identities but rather their political affiliation. He claimed that a number of minorities were members of the Awami League—Hasina’s political party—which led to violence against them.
On the condemnation of the alleged violence against Hindus posted by Trump, Yunus said: “It is mostly propaganda. It is totally baseless propaganda. It is unfortunate. Most of this propaganda originates from the Indian side to keep this tension alive, probably.”
“In reality, it does not exist. We have this case of the celebration of the most celebrated puja of worship that the Hindus have. Thousands of puja sites were done with celebrations with no incidents at all,” he added.
Yunus further said that he has never interacted with Trump, has friends from both the Republican and Democratic parties, and does not expect US’ policy towards Bangladesh to change when the new administration assumes power in Washington in January 2025.
He said that the government of Bangladesh would look to extradite Hasina from India, following the completion of legal cases against her in the country.
Last week, the Bangladesh government had said that it was awaiting a Red Notice from Interpol seeking Hasina’s arrest due to the alleged killings of student protesters.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
Also Read: 100 days of Yunus govt in Bangladesh—nepotism, chaos, U-turns
Yunus has lost his godfather. The Clintons and Obamas no longer call the shots in Washington DC. It’s hard to tell which way Bangladesh will go. But the next four years will be roller coaster ride for sure.
Yunus’ bravado against India is not going to save him. It will only earn him India’s ire. Something he can ill afford in the absence of his masters (Clinton, Obama).
Maybe he will reach out to China for protection. But in that case the Chinese will demand their pound of flesh.
One thing is for sure – what happened in Bangladesh was no revolution, no spontaneous outburst of passion and anger. It was a cold calculated game of chess played with great finesse.