A political uncertainty is hanging over Bangladesh with a little to no hope of returning to normal in the foreseeable future.
After the interim government headed by Professor Mohammad Yunus took over the office on August 8, the country has been grappling with manifold challenges ranging from collapse of social security system, government administration to rising inflation and unrest in industrial sector largely in the ready-made garment factories.
On top of this, the interim government has been under tremendous pressure from political parties mainly from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to organize a national election within a hortest span of time seemingly with or without adequate reforms of government organs and agencies which are said to have been riddled with corruption and cronyism under the previous government.
But the students who had led the mass July-August protests to make Sheikh Hasina government fall, civil society and people in general want the next parliamentary election after a meaningful reform of all government bodies.
Yet, Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus in a recent statement indicated that it may be possible to hold next national elections at the end of 2025 or first half of the election 2026. But BNP has been tenacious to have a clear road map for the elections very shortly.
Meanwhile, another key stakeholder in the current political scenario, Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh has understandably followed a go-slow policy over the national elections. The Islamist party that has turned heads after the downfall of the Awami League seems to be busy at the moment with strengthening and organizing its supporters for the upcoming elections.
Apart from this, there has been tangible international pressure on the interim government. Although the US and other western nations have put their weight behind the Yunus government, our relations with our closest reighbour, India, have remained strained on many issues. Modi government has also kept the interim government on its toes blaming its failure to rein in violent attacks against minorities mostly Hindus.
Amid all these challenges, the interim government has to face non-cooperation and saboteurs within its administration. For instance, there was a big fire on Thursday at the Secretariat that ravaged four floors of a building, destroying important files, documents, computers, furniture, and other materials from six divisions across five ministries. This fire has been described by Local Government Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain as a deliberate conspiracy aimed at undermining the interim government and destroying evidence of corruption.
Earlier, there were violent protests by the members of Bangladesh Ansar, a force tasked with providing security to government installations and aiding law enforcement agencies, surrounding the Secretariat on August 25 under the guise of realizing some of their demands. Those Ansar members were suspected of trying to destabilize the interim government.
We are in belief that the national elections should take place after major reforms. Until then, the interim government should receive unwavering support and cooperation from all political parties and other stakeholders. Otherwise, all our sacrifice and works for a democracy will count for nothing.
