Yunus moves to grant immunity to protesters who toppled Hasina, installed him in power

Bangladesh’s Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus has approved a bill granting protection to protestors behind the 2024 movement that toppled the Sheikh Hasina government in August.

At a press briefing, Law Adviser Asif Nazrul said “the July revolutionists” were indemnified for the acts they committed with an aim of “political resistance” during the uprising under the “July Mass Uprising Protection and Accountability Ordinance”.

“We had announced this earlier. It was our commitment to the July revolutionists,” he said, emerging from a meeting of the advisory council chaired by Yunus.

Protestors who were part of the uprising in 2024 would be able to bypass persecution for overthrowing the Awami League government. Under the draft, the government would withdraw if any case was filed by now, and no new case could be lodged against the July revolutionists, often called “July warriors”.

Nazrul said the “political resistance” in the case of the ordinance “meant the acts committed by July revolutionists to restorea democratic governance system, toppling the fascist government”.

The adviser, however, added that the law would not spare anyone who murdered others in July and August for any personal or narrow interest.

The development came over a week after an inter-ministerial meeting asked the Law Ministry to quickly draft an indemnity ordinance for those involved in the student-led uprising.

Meanwhile, Hasina, earlier this month, strongly criticised the interim government led by Nobel laureate  Muhammad Yunus , accusing it of allowing religious extremism and attacks on minority communities to increase. In an exclusive interview with CNN-News18, Hasina also urged India to stand up for democratic values in the region.

“Bangladesh is witnessing the rise of religious extremism, mob violence and political opportunism, all enabled by the state’s current leadership,” she said.

Hasina’s comments came amid broader political uncertainty, including disputes over representation in the upcoming February 12 general elections. Her Awami League  remains barred from contesting, and calls have gone out for supporters to abstain from voting.

With inputs from agencies