Bangladesh’s acting leader, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, took the oath of office with the promise to “uphold, support, and protect the constitution.”At the presidential palace in Dhaka, the 84-year-old and more than a dozen members of his new cabinet took an oath to serve their roles “sincerely.”Only a few days had passed since Sheikh Hasina, the woman who had ruled Bangladesh for fifteen years with an iron fist, had crossed the border into India and taken off for India.
“Yunus sworn in as Bangladesh’s acting leader”
After weeks of student-led protests that resulted in hundreds of deaths, calls for Ms. Hasina’s resignation as prime minister intensified.After a meeting with student leaders, military leaders, and President Mohammed Shahabuddin, Prof. Yunus was named chief adviser of the interim government.
The students had made it plain that they preferred Prof. Yunus to be in charge and would not accept a government run by the military.Nahid Islam and Asif Mahmud, two students who spearheaded the anti-government demonstrations, are members of his new cabinet.After years of autocratic rule, there is hope that Prof. Yunus, the self-proclaimed banker for the poor, will restore democracy to Bangladesh.
Shortly after arriving in Dhaka from France on Thursday, the entrepreneur and economist told the BBC that “people are excited.”Later, he declared to reporters that Bangladesh “has got a second independence” and demanded that the 170 million-person country’s law and order be reinstated.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted his “best wishes” for Prof. Yunus after his inauguration, stating on X/Twitter that his government was “committed” to collaborating with its neighbour for “peace, security, and development.”Prof. Yunus paid respects to the deceased, stating that during Ms. Hasina’s leadership, they had “protected the nation” and “given it new life.”
Although she had started that rule as a symbol of democracy, by the time she left, people saw her as an authoritarian who had tried to stifle criticism in order to solidify her power.There were plenty of prisoners who wanted to criticise her. During her tenure, Prof. Yunus—who was praised for his innovative use of microloans—was among those who ran into legal issues.He was considered a public enemy by Ms. Hasina; he is presently out on bail, contesting a six-month jail sentence in what he has described as a politically motivated case.In a speech on Thursday, he urged the youth of the nation to assist him in reconstructing the South Asian nation.
“We need to construct a new seedbed right now; they will build it,” he continued, pointing to the students who had come to welcome him.His appointment as Bangladesh’s acting leader comes after several turbulent weeks.Following the start of protests in July aimed at eliminating a quota system for civil service jobs, over 400 people are said to have passed away.Relatives of veterans of Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence from Pakistan are eligible to apply for one-third of these positions. Protesters claimed that the current system needed to be changed because it was discriminatory.Even though the Supreme Court upheld the students’ demands and significantly scaled back the quota system, the protests eventually expanded into a larger anti-government movement driven by crackdowns.
Both demonstrators and Bangladeshi media attributed the rising death toll on the police. According to officials, officers have never fired except in cases of self-defence or to defend state property.On Monday, a planned march on the prime minister’s house was organised by students and their supporters.However, before the march could really get underway, Sheikh Hasina’s resignation as prime minister and her flight from Bangladesh were announced. She’s in Delhi right now.
(BBC)
