Bangladesh’s interim leader, Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus, issued a rebuke of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s public statements from Indian soil, claiming that he personally urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene and prevent her from addressing Bangladeshis online.
In remarks delivered during an interaction at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London, Mr Yunus described a volatile political atmosphere in post-Hasina Bangladesh and expressed frustration over what he suggests to be Delhi’s indifference to the destabilising impact of her continued communications.
“The whole anger and everything is now transferred to India, because she went there. Not only is she living there, but the problem is, when I had a chance to talk to Prime Minister Modi, I just simply said, ‘You want to host her? I cannot force you to abandon that policy, but please help us in making sure she doesn’t speak to Bangladeshi people, the way she is doing’,” Mr Yunus said.
According to Mr Yunus, Ms Hasina, who fled to India after being ousted by a student-led uprising in August 2024, continues to issue addresses to Bangladeshis through social media platforms, including YouTube and Facebook, often announcing these broadcasts in advance. These, Mr Yunus said, provoke public anger and risk inciting unrest in Bangladesh.
“She announces on such and such day at such and such hour, she will speak, and the whole of Bangladesh gets very angry, the way she is speaking. Why is she keeping this whole anger thing inside of us now? And is India doing what you asked? No. Mr Modi’s answer, I quote, he said, ‘It’s the social media, we cannot control it’,” Mr Yunus claimed.
“What can you say? It’s an explosive situation. You can’t just walk away by saying it’s social media. So this is what is still going on,” he added.
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