Page 3 - Bangladesh Election

Bangladesh's interim govt chief Yunus mulls resignation: Report

Bangladesh's interim government chief Professor Muhammad Yunus mulls resignation as he finds it difficult to work because political parties failed to reach a common ground, BBC Bangla service reported at midnight on Thursday quoting student-led National Citizen Party CP party chief Nhid Islam. "We have been hearing news of sir's (Yunus) resignation since this morning. So I went to meet sir to discuss that issue . . . He said he is thinking about it. He feels that the situation is such that he cannot work," Islam told the BBC Bangla. The NCP convenor said Chief Adviser Yunus expressed his fear that he would not be able to work in the current situation of the country saying, I won't be able to work unless the political parties can reach a common ground". The leader of the NCP who visibly emerged with Yunus's blessings in February this year, said he told Yunus to stay strong for the sake of the country's security, and future and to meet the expectations of the mass uprising. Islam sai

Bangladesh's ex-PM Sheikh Hasina's son Joy takes US citizenship: Report

Sajeeb Wazed Joy took the oath of US citizenship at the US Citizenship Centre in Washington, DC and received his citizenship certificate on Saturday, the daily Bangladesh Pratidin reported

Bangladesh defends Awami League ban as internal matter, cites security

Elections are entirely Bangladesh's internal matter, Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus' top aide has said, adding the ban on former prime minister Sheikh Hasina's party was necessary to protect national security and sovereignty. Yunus' Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam was reacting to concerns raised by India on the ban imposed on the activities of Hasina's Awami League. Bangladesh on Monday officially disbanded Awami League under an overnight revised anti-terrorism law. Elections are entirely our internal matter. We urge all to respect the sovereign will of our people in matters relating to elections, Alam told Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), the state-run news agency, on Tuesday. The ban on activities of the Awami League is necessary to protect national security and sovereignty, Alam added. India's External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Tuesday said the ban on Awami League without due process is a concerning development. New Delhi also called for early holding of fr

Ousted Bangladesh PM Hasina's party Awami League barred from election

The move comes after the interim government of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, banned all activities of the Awami League under the Anti-Terrorism Act after days of protests

Deposed Bangladesh PM Hasina warns strongly against bid to ban her party

Deposed Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday issued a stern warning against threats to ban her age-old Awami League, saying that the party is not a parasite or did not emerge with floodwaters. Their (the interim government) audacity astonishes me, she said, in a virtual address to party workers and supporters from India, where she now lives after fleeing Bangladesh in August last year after her nearly 16-year-long Awami League government was toppled in a student-led uprising steered by Students Against Discrimination (SAD). Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, who was in a protracted row with the past regime for obscure reasons, flew from Paris three days later and assumed the charge of an interim government as the nominee of the SAD, which demanded the ban on Awami League. A part of SAD leadership recently floated a political outfit called National Citizen Party (NCP), visibly with blessings of Yunus, whose administration by now disbanded Awami League'

Bangladesh won't ban Awami League, leaders may face trial: Muhammad Yunus

Reaffirming the administration's commitment to holding elections as planned, Yunus said the vote would not be delayed for any demands

Bangladesh's interim govt shows concern over 'attempts of vandalism, arson'

Bangladesh's interim government of Professor Muhammad Yunus expressed its concern over attempts of vandalism and arson attacks nationwide, hours after it said deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina's remarks caused unwanted demolition of the country's founding father's residence in Dhaka. Chief Adviser Yunus's press wing issued the latest statement on Thursday saying, the interim government observes with deep concern that some people and quarters are trying to vandalize and set on fire different institutions and establishments throughout the country. "The government will prevent such activities with a strong hand. The interim government is ready to protect the life and property of the citizens, it said and promised stern punitive actions against the persons and quarters concerned by law enforcement agencies. Chief Adviser's press wing released the statement hours after the interim government said the Wednesday demolition of Bangladesh's founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's 32 ...

Bangladesh moves to drop secularism from Constitution: What we know so far

The existing principles-nationalism, socialism, democracy, and secularism-were established in the 1972 constitution, drafted after Bangladesh's independence during the 1971 India-Pakistan War

Party of Bangladesh's former PM Khaleda Zia urges elections by August

Yunus has said elections might be possible by the end of 2025, but only following electoral reforms

Bangladesh revokes Sheikh Hasina's passport, cites crimes against humanity

Sheikh Hasina and 11 others are summoned to a Bangladesh court on February 12. The former Prime Minister fled to India in August after student protests ended her 16-year Awami League rule

Bangladesh CEC says 180 million people denied their voting rights

Bangladesh's Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin on Sunday said that almost 180 million people have been denied their voting rights and the Election Commission wants to end their deprivation, The Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported. The CEC, while addressing the inaugural ceremony of a training programme for election officers ahead of a voter list updating exercise, said the Election Commission (EC) wants to remove the fact that the people have been deprived of the voting right for so long. We want to remove the pain of their deprivation. We are steadfast in our commitment, he said. The countrywide door-to-door data collection for updating the list of possible voters will start on January 20. The CEC said they are here to hear the 180 million people who have been suffering from the deprivation of voting rights. We've taken the responsibility so that we can remove their deprivation, he said. He said the commission's main goal is to arrange a fair and credible election.

Bangladesh may hold next election in late 2025 or first half of 2026: Yunus

Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Monday said the next general election in the country could take place by the end of 2025 or the first half of 2026. He, however, said the timing of the election will largely depend upon the political consensus and the extent of the reforms that must be carried out prior to it. "Broadly speaking, the election can be scheduled between the end of 2025 and the first half of 2026," he said in a televised speech to the nation on Vijay Diwas. Vijay Diwas commemorates the Pakistan military's surrender to Indian forces. India's historic victory led to the liberation of Bangladesh. Yunus said he has repeatedly appealed to all to hold the polls after completing all the major reforms. "However, if, due to political consensus, we have to hold the election on the basis of a flawless preparation of the voter list with minor reforms, then it may be possible to hold the elections by the end of 2025," United News of Bangladesh quoted Yunus as saying. "A

Sheikh Hasina's coalition party office in Dhaka attacked, set on fire

The fire service went to the spot and extinguished the fire. When a large number of protestors went in front of the Jatiya Party left the office. Protesters vandalized Jatiya Party offices, pulled

Tension grips Bangladesh as protesters demand President's resignation

Several hundred protesters on Tuesday tried to storm the presidential palace, demanding President Mohammed Shahabuddin's resignation for his recent comment on deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina. In an interview with Bangla daily Manab Zamin last week, Shahabuddin said he did not have any documentary evidence of Hasina resigning as prime minister before she fled the country on August 5 amidst student-led mass protests. Witnesses and TV footage showed protestors under different banners scuffling with police as they barred the demonstrators from entering the Bangabhaban. The police eventually fired sound grenades, prompting army troops to later intervene and then send policemen inside the palace. The situation eased a little as the military using loudspeakers requested agitators to leave the Bangabhaban gate. The Business Standard, a Bangladeshi daily, quoted hospital sources as saying that two people sustained gunshot injuries when security forces fired shots to contain protesters

Bangladesh's interim govt recalls envoys from five nations, including India

Bangladesh's interim government has recalled envoys from five countries, including India, the UN, and Australia

UN to support Bangladesh reforms undertaken by Yunus-led interim govt

The United Nations will support Bangladesh in its reform initiatives, including police and election reforms, undertaken by the interim government, a top official of the world body said on Sunday. The chief of the UN in Bangladesh, Gwyn Lewis, met Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus here and discussed a wide range of issues, including reforms, corruption, floods, the Rohingya crisis, and the UN-led investigation into the July-August violence, The Daily Star newspaper reported. Lewis expressed her support for the reform initiatives undertaken by the interim government and thanked Yunus for taking up the extraordinary role, the paper said. Yunus, 84, recently announced the formation of six commissions to reform the judiciary, election system, administration, police, anti-corruption commission and the constitution. The Nobel laureate took oath as the head of the interim government on August 8, three days after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled to India following widespread protes

B'desh interim leader to present outline on reforms soon, says his aide

Bangladesh's interim leader Muhammad Yunus will soon come up with a comprehensive framework on reforms, including on the transition of power, after consulting all political parties, his special assistant has said. Nobel laureate Yunus, who was appointed Bangladesh's Chief Adviser after the fall of Sheikh Hasina-led government on August 5, on Saturday held a series of meetings with 35 political parties, including Jatiya Party, Gono Forum, Islami Andolon Bangladesh, Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), at the State Guest House Jamuna in the capital. "The Chief Adviser exchanged views with political parties and talked about reforms (to be brought by the interim government) and their outline," Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) news agency quoted his special assistant Mahfuj Alam as saying. On the outcomes of the meetings, Mahfuj Alam said the political leaders who joined meetings presented many reform proposals and "the chief adviser will present an outline on the reforms soon". He will mai

Chief adviser Yunus can't delay B'desh election for too long, says BNP

The BNP wants to avoid a repeat of the past, where an army-controlled caretaker government in 2006 stayed beyond its mandated three months and delayed the voting by about two years

Bangladeshi turmoil risks weaker banks and slower financial reforms: S&P

An interim government, led by economist Muhammad Yunus, has been appointed to plug a power vacuum and hold elections, but the protests have widened to target officials appointed during Hasina's term

How Bangladeshi youths forced out leader who ruled for much of their lives

Jannatul Prome hopes to leave Bangladesh to study more or possibly find a job after she finishes her university degree, frustrated by a system that she says doesn't reward merit and offers little opportunity for young people. We have very limited scope here, said the 21-year-old, who would have left sooner if her family had enough money to pay tuition at foreign universities for both her and her older brother at the same time. But recent events have given her hope that one day she might be able to return to a transformed Bangladesh: After 15 years in power, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country last week chased out by young protesters, Prome among them, who say they are fed up with the way her increasingly autocratic rule has stifled dissent, favoured the elite and widened inequalities. Students initially poured into Bangladesh's streets in June, demanding an end to rules that set aside up to 30 per cent of government jobs for the descendants of veterans who ..