by Subir Bhaumik (from Calcutta)*
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s unceremonious exit from the country was clearly under military pressure, as the army was not willing to enforce her orders for a further crackdown on the student protests. She was reportedly given less than an hour to decide whether she would agree to avail the safe passage that the army chief Gen Waqar U Zaman was prepared to give. Considering that the army chief was Hasina’s relative and had been made chief at her intervention, this was a trifle surprising. She was not even given time for a final address to the nation and her residence was left open for loot. Even her father’s statue was clobbered down by the mob celebrating victory.
On Monday when she flew into India on her way to where it is not yet known, the mobs infiltrated by radical Islamist cadres unleashed a nationwide rampage which the army seemed to not attempt to stop. The police and the Awami Leaguers, the religious minorities and secular personalities were at the receiving end of the collective vendetta, right in the middle of the storm that Hasina had left untamed.
The orgy of violence has left a trail of blood and destruction on Monday. In just one day, more than 70 people have been killed, 76 police stations have been set on fire and weapons looted, 14 bank branches looted and set on fire, 30,000 houses belonging to Awami Leaguers and religious minorities burnt down, 11,000 business establishments including TV channels burnt down and destroyed, 37 power grid stations, 39 train bogies and 29 petrol pumps all set on fire and 23 Hindu temples and churches vandalised. Those killed were mostly Awami Leaguers and security personnel, mostly police but some border guards.
Though in his address to the nation, the army chief General Waqar u Zaman took “full responsibility” for restoring peace and ensuring a smooth transition, the violence on Monday and the army’s response raise more questions than answers.
It is understandable that a professional army would not like to open fire on unarmed students who are peacefully protesting. But to let lumpens who have joined in for loot have a field day or the Islamist radicals who are attacking police stations and killing men in uniform does not leave behind a feeling of reassurance.
On Wednesday, army chief Gen Waqar claimed the situation had normalised. He said since the police units had thrown in the towel, it was impossible for the army to cover up despite full-scale deployment. He promised the police was being reorganised as a professional force and would deliver in future.
Bangladesh will be governed now by an interim government headed by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus. The composition of his interim cabinet is yet to be finalised. It seems the student protestors want no political party representation but the army has opened discussions with most political parties except the ruling Awami League.
The principal Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP has announced its exiled leader Tarique Rahman would return from London. If elections are held within three months, the BNP have good reasons to fancy its chances. But it ally Jamaat e Islami is a banned organisation though it is possible that either the ban may now be lifted or the Jamaat will formed. The Awami League is too demoralised and leaderless to pose a challenge.
For India, Hasina’s unceremonious ouster is a huge cause for worry. The anti-quota protest movement had a strong anti-India flavour because Delhi was seen as Hasina’s principal backer. Slogans like “Bharat jader Mamabari, Bangla charo taratari” ( Leave Bangladesh if your uncle’s home is India). More than 7000 Indian students studying in Bangladesh educational institutions like medical colleges had to be evacuated and many complained of harassment and intimidation.
The anti-India mood has peaked now that Hasina has flown into India. So any post-Hasina dispensation, be it a military-backed interim government (as promised by the army chief) or an elected government (if elections are held soon), is likely to be less than friendly to India and demonstratively so. Not only because they will have elements who resent India’s unstinted support to Hasina and her party but also because none in any post-Hasina dispensation will likely be seen as friendly to India.
Nobel laureate Muhammed Yunus, who may play a crucial role in the interim dispensation, has already set the pitch by “feeling hurt when India says the violence in Bangladesh is its internal affair.” So bilateral relations may end up hitting the ditch from the peak after soaring to a “Shonali Adhyay” (Golden Phase) during Hasina’s fifteen years in power when she comprehensively addressed India’s security and connectivity concerns.
On the cover photo, Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus ©Rehman Hasad/Shutterstock.com
* Subir Bhaumik is a former BBC correspondent and a former senior editor at Dhaka-based bdnews24.com
