Bangladesh Crisis: Nobel Laureate and 'banker to the poor' Muhammad Yunus, who will be the head of the interim government in Bangladesh, will return to his violence-hit homeland on Thursday. Yunus will then be sworn in as the head of the interim government. Yunus's name was finalised for the post on Tuesday after former PM Sheikh Hasina's ouster from Bangladesh.
Muhammad Yunus will land at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on an Emirates flight from Dubai. Yunus is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka at 2:10 PM (Dhaka time) on Thursday.
The interim government will take oath at 8 PM on Thursday. As many as 15 members will take oath with Yunus at the head, said Chief of Army Staff General Waker-Uz-Zaman.
Yunus Returns After Acquittal In Labour Law Case
Muhammad Yunus's return to Bangladesh comes after his acquittal in a labour laws violations case. He was sentenced to six months in prison in January this year. Former Managing Director of Grameen Bank, Yunus, faced over 100 labour law violation charges. He was also accused of corruption.
'Don't Create More Enemies': Yunus Calls For Ending Violence
Muhammad Yunus called on 'protesters' to end the spate of violence across the country and help people in need. "Our youth is ready to give this leadership to create a new world. Let us not miss the chance by going into any senseless violence. Violence is our enemy. Please don’t create more enemies. Be calm and get ready to build the country,” he was quoted as saying by news agency United News of Bangladesh.
No Clarity On Police Force Resuming Service
The chaos in Bangladesh is yet to abate with miscreants still looting shops and banks and attacking the minority Hindu community. The police, who went on strike on Tuesday, are yet to rejoin duty. However, new president of the Bangladesh Police Association Muhammad Abdullahhel Baki said that the force would begin serving the public soon. "The police are friends of the people. However, under Hasina's government, the police force was turned into a club-wielding force due to political vendetta," he was quoted as saying by the Dhaka Tribune.
Copies of an unsigned notice, calling on all police personnel to refrain from service and join an indefinite strike came up across the country on Tuesday. On Wednesday, police stations across Bangladesh wore a deserted look. There is no clarity yet as to when the police force would rejoin service.
RAB Gets New Chief
The Rapid Action Battalion, the anti-crime and anti-terrorism elite force of the Bangladesh Police, got its new chief on Wednesday when Abul Kalam Mohammad Shahidur Rahman was appointed its new director general.
The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), too, got a new commissioner as Muhammad Mainul Hasan was installed in the post.
Sheikh Hasina Loyalists Flee Amid Arrest Fears
Fearing arrest, former army chief General Aziz Ahmed's wife and son have reportedly fled to Bahrain.
Earlier on Wednesday Former Minister in the Sheikh Hasina Cabinet, Junaid Ahmed Palak, was arrested while trying to take a flight to New Delhi. Former Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Hassan Mahmud was also arrested at the airport.
Meanwhile, leaders of Sheikh Hasina's Bangladesh Awami League and their families are being targeted across Bangladesh. At least 50 such murders have been recorded amid the ongoing violence in Bangladesh.