Bangladesh’s interim government to take over after Hasina quits: Who is in charge now?

Sheikh Hasina’s out. After demonstrations turned violent on Sunday, and a sea of protesters descended upon the prime minister’s official residence — the Ganabhaban — Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced her decision to resign and fled the nation, seeking safety in India.

Shortly after, Bangladesh’s army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman addressed the nation, stating that an interim government would now run Bangladesh and called for calm. “The country has suffered a lot, the economy has been hit, many people have been killed — it is time to stop the violence,” said Waker, dressed in military fatigues, shortly after jubilant crowds stormed and looted Ganabhaban, the Bangladesh prime minister’s official residence.

He added that he would talk to the president to form the interim government and had held talks with the main opposition parties and civil society members — but not Hasina’s Awami League.

The question now arises: Who shall head this interim government? When will elections be held? For those who want answers, here’s what we found out so far.

Forming an interim government

According to media reports, General Waker-Uz-Zaman held consultations with leaders of some parties including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Jatiya Party, Jamaat-e-Islami in the emerging situation. In the same meeting representatives of students and teachers were also present.

Later, President Mohammed Sahabuddin, as per a report by Prothom Alo, also held a meeting with the chief of three services, political leaders, representatives of civil society and quota leaders aiming to form the interim government.

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President Mohammed Sahabuddin chaired the meeting where a condolence resolution was taken in memory of those killed in the anti-quota movement and prayers were sought for forgiveness and peace for their departed souls, said a press release. The meeting also decided to form an interim government soon.

It was after this meeting that it was announced that BNP chief Begum Khaleda Zia would be released immediately. Moreover, it was also announced that all prisoners detained for quota protests would be released.

Who’s who in the interim government

It is still unknown whether General Waker-Uz-Zaman would lead the interim government. However, as per reports, key organisers of the Anti-Discriminatory Student Movement — who were in charge of the anti-quota protests that led to Hasina’s ouster — have proposed Nobel Laureate Dr Mohammad Yunus as the chief advisor of the interim government.

As per the Daily Star, Nahid Islam, one of the key coordinators of the movement, said they have already talked with Professor Yunus, and he has given his consent considering the present situation of the country.

Professor Yunus gained international prominence in 2006 when he was awarded the Nobel Prize for founding the Grameen Bank and pioneering the concepts of microcredit and microfinance. A critic of Hasina and her administration, he was convicted by the Hasina-led government in January for violating the country’s labour laws and is currently out on bail.

Speaking earlier about Hasina’s resignation, he said: “Bangladesh is liberated… We are a free country now.”

“We were an occupied country as long as she (Hasina) was there. She was behaving like an occupation force, a dictator, a general, controlling everything. Today all the people of Bangladesh feel liberated.”

Notably, Yunus, according to a report in The Print, is currently in Paris. He told the media outlet that he would soon return to Bangladesh.

Besides Yunus, the names of Dr Salimullah Khan and Md Nazrul Islam, also known as Dr Asif Nazrul, have been recommended to be part of the interim government. It is reported that the BNP floated the name of Dr Salimullah Khan to head the interim government.

Dr Khan is a prominent public intellectual known for his analysis of national and international politics and culture through Marxist and Lacanian theories. He is regarded as one of Bangladesh’s leading intellectuals. He is known to make guest appearances on talk shows on domestic and global politics on Bangladeshi television networks.

Similarly, Dr Asif Nazrul is a Bangladeshi author, novelist, columnist, political analyst, and law professor at the University of Dhaka. Nazrul, who has written over 10 novels and non-fiction books, is well-known for his harsh critique of Bangladeshi politics. Nazrul currently teaches law at the University of Dhaka. He formerly worked for the Bangladeshi government as an administrative officer and writer.

Other names proposed

According to a News18 report, a total of 27 names have been proposed who shall be a part of the interim government in Bangladesh. Among these names, there is also General Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan (retired), who was the Chief of Army Staff of the Bangladesh Army from 2012-2015.

Notably, General Bhuiyan was among the 48 retired army officers on Sunday (August 4) who had called on the government to withdraw the armed forces from the streets immediately. In a statement, he had read: “Today we appeared here because we are deeply concerned, troubled and saddened by all the egregious killings, tortures, disappearances and mass arrests that have been tormenting Bangladesh over the past three weeks.”

Other notable names to be reportedly a part of the interim government are Justice Md Abdul Wahhab Miah (retired), the former Chief Justice of Bangladesh; Major General Syed Iftekhar Uddin (retired), former Inspector General of Prisons; Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, economist and former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the WTO and UN Office in Geneva; Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, a journalist and editor-in-chief of the Manab Zamin, a Bengali tabloid; Brigadier General M Sakhawat Hossain (retired), former Election Commissioner of Bangladesh; Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, economist and Bangladesh Rehabilitation Assistance Committee (BRAC) chairperson, and Justice M A Matin (retired), retired judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh.

Tough job ahead

While Bangladesh’s future remains uncertain as of now, one thing is certain; things are going to be tough for those in charge. As Irene Khan, a UN special rapporteur was quoted as telling Al Jazeera, “There’s a very tough job ahead.”

Al Jazeera’s Tanvir Chowdhury agreed with this assessment, telling the media outlet that the message from the protesters is that whoever comes to power next “will now know that they won’t tolerate any kind of dictatorship or mismanagement and that the students will decide”.

Meanwhile, foreign nations such as the US have said that the interim government in Bangladesh should be formed according to democratic principles, rule of law and the will of the Bangladeshi people. “We want to see the Bangladeshi people decide the future of the Bangladeshi government,” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters at his daily news conference.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also called for a “peaceful, orderly and democratic transition” as well as a “full, independent, impartial and transparent investigation into all acts of violence,” his spokesman Farhan Haq said.

With inputs from agencies