Muhammad Yunus stays in Bangladesh to head the interim government

Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was sworn in as Bangladesh’s interim leader, pledging to “maintain, support and protect the constitution”.

The 84-year-old was sworn in at the presidential palace in Dhaka along with more than ten members of his new cabinet, vowing to do his job “with integrity”.

He flew to the capital, Dhaka, just days after Sheikh Hasina – the woman who ruled Bangladesh with an iron fist for 15 years – fled across the border to India.

Ms Hasina resigned as prime minister after weeks of student-led protests – which left hundreds dead – escalated and forced her to step down.

The decision to appoint Prof Yunus as the chief adviser to the interim government follows a meeting between President Mohammed Shahabuddin, military leaders and student leaders.

The students were clear that they will not accept a military-led government, but they want Prof. Yunus to lead.

Among his new cabinet are Nahid Islam and Asif Mahmud, students who led anti-government protests.

The hope is that Prof. Yunus, who is called the bank of the poor, will restore democracy to Bangladesh after years of independent rule.

“People are happy,” the businessman and economist told the BBC shortly after arriving in Dhaka from France on Thursday.

He later told reporters that Bangladesh had “gained its second freedom” as he sought to restore law and order to the nation of 170 million people.

After Prof Yunus was sworn in, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered “best wishes”, writing on X/Twitter that his government is “committed” to working with its neighbor to “bring peace, security and development”.

Professor Yunus paid tribute to the dead, saying they “protected the nation” and gave it “a new life” after Ms Hasina’s rule.

He had started that law as a symbol of democracy but, when he fled, he was seen as a dictator who wanted to consolidate his authority by silencing dissent.

The prisons were full of people who wanted to talk about him. Prof Yunus – praised for his openness to using small loans – was one of those who found himself in legal trouble during his tenure.

Mrs. Hasina considered him a public enemy – now she has been granted bail, she is appealing the six-month jail sentence in this case which she called political.

Speaking on Thursday, he appealed to the young people of the country to help him rebuild the South Asian country.

“Bangladesh could be a good country, but we have destroyed the opportunities,” he said.

“Now we have to build a seed bed again – a new bed will be built for them,” he said, showing his hands to the students who came to greet him.

His ascension as interim leader of Bangladesh follows weeks of unrest.

More than 400 people are reported to have died after protests demanding the end of the civil service quota system that began in July.

A third of these jobs are reserved for relatives of veterans from Bangladesh’s liberation war from Pakistan, which was held in 1971. Campaigners said the plan was racist and needed to be reformed.

Although this demand was largely met after the Supreme Court supported the students’ demands and significantly reduced the quota system, the protests then turned into an anti-government movement. fueled by cracking.

Bangladeshi media and protesters blamed the police for the death toll. Officials are adamant that the police opened fire because they were defending themselves or protecting government property.

The students and their supporters had planned to march to the prime minister’s residence on Monday.

But before the march could get underway, news broke that Sheikh Hasina had fled Bangladesh and resigned as prime minister. He is currently in Delhi.