
Former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina has slammed the interim government chief adviser Muhammad Yunus and said those targeting the Awami League members will be brought to justice.
Interacting with the family members of her party leaders during an interaction on social media, Hasina said, “Allah kept me alive for a reason”, and the “day will come” when those targeting Awami League members will be brought to justice.
She slammed Muhammad Yunus, the chief adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government while describing him as “someone who never loved the people”.
“He loaned out small amounts at high interest rates and used the money to live lavishly abroad. We could not understand his duplicity then, so we helped him a lot. But people did not benefit. He did well for himself. Then developed a lust for power that is burning Bangladesh now,” said Hasina in the interaction while her camera was turned off.
The 77-year-old Awami League leader said Bangladesh, once seen as a model of development, has now turned into a “terrorist country”.
“Our leaders and workers are being killed in a way that cannot be described. Awami League, cops, lawyers, journalists, artists, everyone is being targeted.”
Also Read | State executions rise 32% to decade high; Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia behind ‘sharp surge’
The former PM alleged a media clampdown in Bangladesh, saying, “Rapes, murders, dacoities, nothing can be reported. And if it is reported, the TV channel or newspaper will be targeted.”
Recounting the horrific killings of her father, Bangladesh's first President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and her entire family, Hasina said, “I lost my father, mother, brother, everyone in one day. And then they did not let us return to the country. I know the pain of losing your own. Allah keeps protecting me, maybe he wants to get some good done through me. Those who have committed these crimes must be punished. This is my pledge,” she said.
Also Read | Japan PM Shigeru Ishiba calls Trump, asks for review of tariffs, more talks
When the family members of murdered Awami League workers and leaders recounted the atrocities against them, Hasina said, “These are not humans, they will face justice. Allah will not tolerate this.”
When a woman shared how her father was killed, the Awami League leader replied, “You will do justice, the way I did justice after my parents were killed. We will find them, the day will come. I believe this, or I would not be alive.”
When a supporter told her, “May Allah grant you the opportunity again,” she replied, “He will. That’s why Allah has kept me alive. I am coming.”
The strong remarks come even as the interim government in Bangladesh has been trying to extradite Sheikh Hasina.
In their meeting on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC summit, Yunus asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the status of the extradition request. He also said that Sheikh Hasina had been making “inflammatory remarks” in the media and “trying to destabilise the situation” in Bangladesh.
Also Read | Video: UK’s Birmingham needs the Pied Piper as rats run amok in city amid trash piles
PM Modi also underscored India’s support for a democratic, stable, peaceful, progressive and inclusive Bangladesh.