Yunus a ‘militant’ leader, selling off Bangladesh to US: Sheikh Hasina

Bangladesh’s former prime minister Sheikh Hasina has launched a fresh attack on the interim government head Muhammad Yunus while accusing him of seizing power with the backing of militants and now “selling the country to the United States”. Her renewed attack comes amid growing friction between Yunus and Bangladesh Army Chief Waker-uz-Zaman, who has demanded that elections be held by December this year.

Yunus threatened to resign after the military called for general elections to be held in December, prompting fresh waves of protest across the nation.

Hasina further accused Yunus of governing with the support of militant groups and condemned the recent ban on her party, the Awami League, calling it illegal and unconstitutional.

In an audio message posted on her party’s Facebook account, Bangladesh’s ousted leader reiterated that Yunus seized power in Bangladesh government with the help of extremist groups.

“He seized power with the help of terrorists, with the help of terrorists, all the terrorists, even those who are banned in various international arenas, from whom we protected the people of Bangladesh. After only one terrorist attack, we took strict measures. Many were arrested. Now prisons are empty. They released everyone. Now, Bangladesh is the reign of those militants,” she said.

She alleged that Yunus has given the reins of the government to “terrorists”, against whom her government fought.

“My father did not agree to America’s demands for St. Martin’s Island. He had to give his life for that. And that was my destiny as I never thought of selling the country to stay in power,” she said.

She recalled how Bangladeshis took up arms and fought along with her father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, for Bangladesh’s independence and said, “It can’t be anyone’s intention to give up even an inch of that country’s soil to anyone. But what a misfortune it is today. Such a person came to power, a person who is absolutely loved by the people of the whole country, a person who is loved by the world, and what happened to that person today when he came to power?”

“The constitution of our great Bengali nation, we got it through a long struggle and the liberation war. Who gave this militant leader, who has illegally seized power, the right to touch the constitution? He does not have the mandate of the people and has no constitutional basis. That position (Chief Advisor) also has no basis, and it does not exist. So, how can he change the law without a parliament? This is illegal,” Hasina added.

On Saturday, Yunus warned of public-backed action if pressure was piled on them through “unreasonable demands” after calls for elections from the army chief and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.

Yunus was appointed as the transitional leader of the interim government on 7 August 2024, days after student-led protests against the government forced Hasina to resign as PM and flee Bangladesh.