'People no longer have right to justice in Bangladesh': Sheikh Hasina slams Muhammad Yunus in first public address after ouster
Ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has slammed the country's interim leader Muhammad Yunus in her first public address, accusing him of persecuting minorities.
In a virtual address at an event in New York on Sunday, she claimed that there were plans to assassinate her and her sister Sheikh Rehana just like their father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1975.
This is her first public address after taking shelter in India following her resignation in August.
Referring to the attack on her official residence in Dhaka on August 5, Hasina said: "The armed protestors were directed towards Ganabhaban. If the security guards opened fire, many lives would have been lost. It was a matter of 25-30 minutes, and I was forced to leave. I told them [guards] not to fire no matter what happened."
"Today, I am being accused of genocide. In reality, Yunus has been involved in genocide in a meticulously designed manner. The masterminds -- the student coordinators and Yunus -- are behind this genocide," she said.
Hasina said the current government in Dhaka failed to protect the minorities.
In a reference to the arrest of Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das, Hasina said: "Hindus, Buddhists, Christians -- no one has been spared. Eleven churches have been razed, temples and Buddhist shrines have been broken. When the Hindus protested, the Iskcon leader was arrested."
"What is this persecution of minorities for? Why are they being ruthlessly persecuted and attacked?" she asked.
"People no longer have the right to justice... I never even got the time to resign," she said, speaking in Bengali.
Hasina said she left Bangladesh in August to stop the violence, but that did not happen.
Ties between India and Bangladesh came under strain after the interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus came to power in August following the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
In a strong message, India had said the interim government in Bangladesh must shoulder its responsibility of protecting all minorities while expressing serious concern over the "surge" of extremist rhetoric and increasing incidents of violence against Hindus.
Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das, arrested for alleged sedition, should be dealt with in a just, fair, and transparent manner, India stated.
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