The head of Bangladesh’s interim government, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, said Monday that recent high-profile resignations in the country are legal.
Yunus, 83, a long-time critic of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, told reporters that all legal procedures were correctly followed in these resignations.
Yunus described the situation as a “student-led revolution,” saying that the resignations of key officials, including the chief justice, five Supreme Court justices and the central bank governor, were properly managed after weeks of protests.
The protests, initially triggered in June by concerns about a government job quota system, grew into a larger uprising.
Hasina resigned and fled to India last week.
Yunus, who took over as interim leader on Thursday, emphasized that restoring judicial independence is a top priority.
He criticized former Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan, calling him “just a hangman.”
Syed Refaat Ahmed was appointed as the new chief justice on Sunday, following a proposal from student leaders. These students aim to remove Hasina’s influence from the political system, which they have criticized as autocratic.
The recent violence has led to more than 300 deaths, including students and police officers.
Yunus accepted the interim role after being approached by student leaders who saw him as a reliable person for their cause.
“It’s not my dream, it’s their dream. So, I’m kind of helping them to make it come true,” Yunus said, according to The Associated Press.
Yunus, known for his microcredit work and Nobel Peace Prize win in 2006, had previously clashed with Hasina’s government.
In 2008, he faced investigations and a 2013 trial over embezzlement allegations related to his Grameen Bank. Yunus denies these charges, and his supporters believe he was targeted due to his strained relationship with Hasina.
The interim government is expected to announce a new election soon, but Yunus did not provide a timeline.
Some information for this report was provided by the Agence France-Presse and The Associated Press.
