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Hasina must ‘keep quiet’ while in India, Yunus tells PTI
Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus has said that former prime minister Sheikh Hasina making political remarks from India is an “unfriendly gesture”, asserting that she must remain silent to prevent discomfort to both countries until Dhaka requests her extradition.
“If India wants to keep her until the time Bangladesh (government) wants her back, the condition would be that she has to keep quiet,” he said.
In an interview with the Press Trust of India at his official residence in Dhaka, Yunus, who was appointed the country’s Chief Adviser after Hasina’s ouster, stressed that while Bangladesh values strong ties with India, New Delhi must move “beyond the narrative that portrays every other political party except Awami League as Islamist and that the country will turn into Afghanistan without Sheikh Hasina.”
“No one is comfortable with her stance there in India because we want her back to try her. She is there in India and at times she is talking, which is problematic. Had she been quiet, we would have forgotten it; people would have also forgotten it as she would have been in her own world. But sitting in India, she is speaking and giving instructions. No one likes it,” he said.
Yunus was apparently referring to Hasina’s statement on August 13 in which she demanded “justice”, saying those involved in recent “terror acts”, killings and vandalism must be investigated, identified and punished.
“It is not good for us or for India. There is discomfort regarding it,” he told PTI.
Following unprecedented anti-government protests that peaked on August 5, Hasina resigned as prime minister and fled to India. Her presence in India for nearly four weeks has fuelled speculation in Bangladesh.
When asked whether Bangladesh has communicated its stance to India, Yunus said it has been conveyed verbally and quite firmly that she should keep quiet.
“Everyone understands it. We have said quite firmly that she should keep quiet. This is an unfriendly gesture towards us; she has been given shelter there and she is campaigning from there. It is not that she has gone there on a normal course. She has fled following a people’s uprising and public anger,” he said.
Yunus stated that the interim government is committed to ensuring justice for the people of Bangladesh against the atrocities, and justice requires that she be brought back to the country.
“Yes, she has to be brought back or else the people of Bangladesh won’t be at peace. The kind of atrocities she has committed, she has to be tried in front of everyone here,” he emphasised.
Discussing the future of the India-Bangladesh relationship, Yunus expressed a desire for good ties with India but insisted that New Delhi must abandon the narrative that only Hasina’s leadership ensures the country’s stability.
“The way forward is for India to come out of the narrative. The narrative is that everybody is Islamist, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is Islamist, and everyone else is Islamist and will make this country into Afghanistan. And Bangladesh is in safe hands with Sheikh Hasina at the helm only. India is captivated by this narrative. India has to come out of this narrative. Bangladesh, like any other nation, is another neighbour,” he said.
Referring to the recent incidents of alleged attacks on Hindu minorities in the country and India raising concerns about it, Yunus said this is just an excuse.
“The issue of trying to portray the conditions of minorities in such a big way is just an excuse,” he said.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence Day address on August 15, expressed hope that the situation in violence-hit Bangladesh would return to normal soon and stated that 1.4 billion Indians are concerned about the safety of Hindus and minorities in the neighbouring country.
Yunus, the 84-year-old Nobel laureate emphasised the need for India and Bangladesh to work together to improve their currently strained relationship.
When asked about ways to improve the Indo-Bangla relations, Yunus said both the countries need to work together, and that it is at a low presently.
“We need to work together to improve this relationship, which is now at a low,” he said.
Speaking about the future of bilateral treaties with India, Yunus said there are demands for a relook at certain treaties such as transit and the Adani electricity deal.
“Everybody is saying that it is needed. We will see what is on paper and, second, what is actually happening on the ground. I can’t answer it specifically. If there is any need to review, we will then raise questions about it,” he said.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has filed 17 cases against Beximco Group’s Vice-Chairman, Salman F Rahman, and 27 others, accusing them of laundering approximately Tk1,000 crore ($83 million) under the guise of export trade. This development was confirmed by Additional Superintendent of Police Azad Rahman through a notification on 18 September.
The investigation, conducted under the Money Laundering Prevention Act, found that Salman F Rahman and his brother, ASF Rahman, who serves as the Chairman of Beximco Group, were involved in laundering around Tk1,000 crore. This was done through the export of goods linked to 93 Letters of Credit (LCs) from Janata Bank PLC between 2021 and 2024. However, the proceeds from these exports were not repatriated to Bangladesh.
The CID revealed that the accused individuals, through an organised operation involving their affiliated companies, exported goods with the malicious intent of transferring money abroad. The probe indicated that they deliberately failed to return the export proceeds, violating multiple sections of the Money Laundering Prevention Act.
According to the CID, Salman F Rahman and his associates used their influence and collaborated with an organised criminal group to launder money. This resulted in 17 cases being filed by the CID’s financial crime unit at Motijheel Police Station.
Salman F Rahman, who has long been a prominent figure during Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule, is now facing an in-depth investigation by the CID’s financial crime unit. The investigation focuses on significant allegations of money laundering and financial misconduct, as highlighted in a preliminary report from the CID on 1 September.
Salman is also accused of laundering Tk33,470 crore abroad, allegedly obtained through loans from seven banks over the past 15 years. Of this, Tk21,681 crore was borrowed from state-owned Janata Bank, while Tk5,281 crore came from IFIC Bank, where Salman previously served as chairman.
In addition to these allegations, Salman is believed to have profited Tk6,600 crore through manipulation of the capital market and is accused of failing to repatriate Tk1,485 crore from export proceeds.
The Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) has predicted light to moderate rain or thundershowers, accompanied by temporary gusty winds, in all eight divisions of the country over the next 24 hours, starting from 9 AM today.
According to the BMD forecast, Chattogram and Sylhet divisions are likely to experience light to moderate rain or thundershowers, while Dhaka and Barishal divisions may see similar weather at a few locations. In Rajshahi, Rangpur, Mymensingh, and Khulna divisions, rainfall is expected in one or two places, with some areas potentially experiencing moderately heavy showers.
The BMD also stated that both day and night temperatures might rise slightly across the country.
On Tuesday, the highest temperature was recorded at 36.5 degrees Celsius in Rajarhat, Rangpur division, while today’s lowest temperature was 24.6 degrees Celsius in Tetulia, also in Rangpur.
In the last 24 hours up to 6 AM today, Cumilla in the Chattogram division recorded 3 mm of rainfall.
The sun is expected to set at 5:58 PM today and rise at 5:46 AM tomorrow in Dhaka.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman today called upon the party men to stay with the people and achieve their trust and love through their respective works.
“The country will go on an election roadmap following the path of reform activities. So, let us achieve the people’s trust and love. Stay with the people and keep them with us,” he said.
Tarique made the call while virtually addressing a public rally as the chief guest in front of BNP’s Nayapaltan central office in the capital marking the International Day of Democracy.
Party’s Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir chaired the rally.
The BNP acting chairman reiterated that changeover of power doesn’t mean only handover of state power; rather it means qualitative change in the state and the country’s politics.
“Every political leader and activist should keep in mind that qualitative change of a political party’s leaders and activists is needed for qualitative change of politics,” he said.
Tarique Rahman urged the party men to prepare themselves to lead a knowledge-based state and society without being confused in any provocation or persuasion.
Tens of thousands of leaders and workers joined the massive gathering. BNP shifted the date of the rally today from Sunday last due to inclement weather.
Recalling the sacrifice of the martyrs to free the country from
autocratic rule, the BNP acting chairman said a huge number of people spontaneously joined the rally on the street.
The pro-Bangladeshi force may have to make more sacrifices to build a discrimination free Bangladesh as cherished by the students-people, he said.
“We have more paths to go. But this path won’t be of terrorism, conflict, revenge or vengeance rather of patience, tolerance and understanding,” the BNP acting chairman said.
Tarique Rahman said the government which is formed through a mass uprising in Bangladesh or any other country must be considered as the government of the people.
So, the people continued supporting the interim government and it will do so in the days to come as well, he hoped.
But at one stage, accountability of the interim government is also ensured through an elected parliament, he mentioned.
So, the foremost and prime target of all the reform activities of the government should be establishing an elected parliament and government through ensuring people’s political empowerment, said the BNP acting chairman.
He urged the government to prioritize the reform programme with the aim of establishing an accountable government and parliament formed with elected representatives by people’s votes.
Tarique Rahman said development, democracy or reforms cannot be sustainable and effective without the political empowerment of the people and without the engagement of people in reform activities.
People’s political empowerment can be ensured through establishing people’s voting rights by holding a free, fair and neutral election, he said.
Tarique Rahman called upon the government to take priority based measures for the reformation of the Election Commission and public administration as well as building law enforcement agencies as efficient forces.
Noting that the interim government has already taken some reform initiatives, the BNP acting chairman said if the interim government cannot fix priorities in view of agenda setting, the clique of conspirators can take various advantages to frustrate the success of the mass upsurge.
Evidences of such conspiracies have already become visible, he added.
Tarique Rahman said the manner of this mass uprising is different from any other previous mass-uprising as the people were confined into the shackle of subjugation losing all democratic and human rights during the illegal regime of the ousted autocrat.
The country was also on the verge of losing its independence and sovereignty, he added.
So, this mass uprising not only established the people’s rights but also protected the country’s independence and sovereignty, Tarique Rahman said.
The BNP acting chairman said the country and its people is now freed from the fears of enforced disappearance, killings, abduction and terrible “Aynaghar”
Now the first task should be establishing the people’s democratic, political and voting rights, he said.
Currently, around 12.5 crore voters are enlisted and around 2.5 crore new voters were included in the voter’s list, he mentioned.
But this 2.5 crore voters of the new generation couldn’t exercise their voting rights in any national election, Tarique Rahman said.
Neither they could elect their cherished public representative nor they get the scope to be public representative by contesting elections, he said.
Noting that half of the total population is women and a large section of society is youth, Tarique Rahman said it is not possible to build a discrimination free humane state keeping this large section of society beyond political engagement.
Unless the political and economic empowerment of people and people’s participation in reform activities can be ensured, reform activities won’t bring any effective results, he mentioned.
As part of state-politics, BNP acting chairman said the BNP had announced a 31-point agenda in 2023 in the presence of representatives of different democratic political parties in Bangladesh, but his party always welcomes the proposal of bringing all necessary changes and modifications in reform agenda.
Terming the ongoing reform process in politics as a continuous process in all sectors of the state, Tarique Rahman said public uprising or reform program is a normal and acceptable practice to democratic politics, where everyone is eligible to express his or her personal opinions, if necessary.
For this reason, he said the BNP has repeatedly emphasized on establishing the right of the people’s voting rights. “BNP believes that the people direct-partnership with the state-politics and political establishment is created to ensure a free, fair and credible general election,” he added.
Evaluating the people’s verdict in the politics, this BNP leader said, “Juas criminal offenses are tried in judicial courts…political activities or political behaviors are tried in people’s courts.”
Greeting the democracy-loving people of Bangladesh on the ‘International Democracy Day’, Tarique Rahman, on behalf of BNP, said the brave students, women, children, farmers and workers of all walks of life have shown the world that the people of Bangladesh are willing to let their chests in front of the gun-point against any dictatorship or misrule.
He said the country’s democracy-loving people would forever remember those with due respect, who made their supreme sacrifices, received serious injuries by losing their hands, feet and eyes or were permanently crippled, in the recent movement to establish democracy.
“The state must fulfill its responsibility towards every family of the victims,” Tarique hoped.
Acting BNP chairman said people’s hard-earned democratic government and its administration was supposed to be the government of the people, by the people and for the people; but in last 15 years mafia rule and sole dictatorship had
been introduced in Bangladesh, turning the state into the government of the mafia, by the mafia and for the mafia.
He said this mafia gang made the country fragile in all areas, turning the country into a totally import-dependent, debt-dependent and sub-dependent state as well.
“The vested quarter has bankrupted the country’s banks. More than Taka about 17 lakh crore were siphoned off in the last decade and a half,” the senior BNP leader alleged.
The mafia cycle, he said, has not only made the country financially fragile, it has also destroyed the socio-economic, cultural and political norms of the country, where country’s constitutional and statutory institutions were rendered ineffective.
“Fascism itself was turned into a prison of justice across the country,” Tarique Rahman mentioned, adding that due to the reckless corruption and looting of the deposed dictatorship, the foreign debt of Bangladesh has exceeded US $100 billion.
He said the child who is born in Bangladesh today has no reason with Taka 1.50 lakh debt each.
This vested circle has completely upset the country’s law and order forces while using them for their narrow party interests, he added.
Tarique Rahman said the fallen dictatorship was the main barrier to the building a democratic-humanitarian Bangladesh. But the 15-year tyranny and misrule were not removed fully till date as the beneficiaries of the circle still being continued to challenge the incumbent interim government from within the administration or under the guise of politics as well.
The interim government, he said, is working to establish a democratic government accountable to the people aimed to establishing the people’s voting right in Bangladesh.
Tarique Rahman said some activities of this government may not be considered as a success by everyone, but the failure of this government will be the failure of all of us.
“So this government cannot be allowed to fail in any way. The people will not allow the interim government to fail despite various provocations from the country and abroad. However, they also must be careful that this government does not become the cause of its own failure,” BNP acting chairman stated.
Earlier, the meeting started after 2.30 pm with recitation from the Holy Quran, where thousands of BNP leaders and workers thronged at city’s Nayapaltan area to joined the rally since morning.
BNP standing committee members and central leaders also addressed the rally.
