Former leader Sheikh Hasina has turned up the heat on Bangladesh’s interim chief Muhammad Yunus, alleging his government has unleashed hardline Islamists on vulnerable minorities. In a pointed exclusive interview, the Awami League chief decried the unchecked assaults on Hindus and others, pinning the blame squarely on Dhaka’s failure to enforce law and order.
Hasina laid bare the gravity: ‘Those in power have shirked their core responsibility—safeguarding every citizen equally.’ She traced the violence’s roots to an illegitimate regime’s leniency toward radicals, who exploit the vacuum to sow terror. Bangladesh’s proud secular heritage, she lamented, is being eroded as extremists gain political leverage, targeting the innocent without consequence.
A torrent of recent atrocities underscores her warnings. Tuesday’s canal tragedy claimed Mithun Sarkar in Naogaon amid theft accusations. Monday doubled the toll: Sarat Mani slaughtered in Narsingdi, Rana Bairagi gunned down in Jessore. Weekend violence felled Khokan Das in Shariatpur, while prior weeks saw Bajendra Biswas shot, Amrit Mandal lynched, and Dipu Das subjected to medieval horrors—lynching followed by immolation.
This spree—seven fatalities in under three weeks—signals a calculated assault on Hindu pockets nationwide. Advocacy groups document over 2,400 incidents and 150+ temple attacks since August. Hasina’s salvo from exile amplifies calls for accountability. With student-led unrest still fresh, Yunus’s coalition must confront whether it can tame the radicals or risks a deeper communal divide. The world watches as Bangladesh teeters on the edge.