Elections In Bangladesh To Be Delayed – OpEd

Chances of an immediate parliament election in troubled Bangladesh faded this week when the country's interim government head Muhammad Yunus refused to provide any timeline for the polls and instead emphasised that he has the "mandate" of first carrying out "vital reforms" in the country.

He, however, promised 'free, fair and participatory eldctions' once the reforms had been carried out.

This is not something that will go down well with both the major political formations in Bangladesh-- the ousted Awami League and the leading opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its ally Jamaat-e-Islami.

The BNP was clearly looking to capitalise on the current mood of the nation which is clearly against the Awami League and come to power, which it last enjoyed during its 2001-06 term. That would only be possible if polls were held soon enough.  

The BNP may welcome the witch-hunt now underway in the bureaucracy, police and security services and other echelons of government where those believed to be close to Awami League are being ousted systematically by both executive orders or by student agitators muscling their way through. The way the judges of Supreme Court including the Chief Justice were made to resign by student protestors with a two-hour ultimatum is the kind enforced changes on display.

Even the Awami League has called for early elections with ousted PM Sheikh Hasina's son Sajeed Wajed Joy calling for Indian intervention to ensure " fresh polls within three months." Perhaps announcement of polls may force all focus on it and soften the witch-hunt against the party leadership and allow the Awami League field a new set of candidates with clean record to exploit public sentiment upset with uncontrolled lawlessness and loot following Hasina's ouster.

But Nobel laureate Yunus, by focusing on reforms, may be delaying the polls. He has blamed deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for 'destroying every institution of the country in her efforts to stay in power'.  

The chief adviser said elections were rigged blatantly and generations of young people grew up without exercising their voting rights. "Banks were robbed with full political patronisation. And the State coffer was plundered by abusing power," Yunus said on Sunday, adding that they will also make sincere efforts to promote national reconciliation.

"In their efforts to stay in power, Sheikh Hasina's dictatorship destroyed every institution of the country. The judiciary was broken. Democratic rights were suppressed through a brutal decade-and-a-half long crackdown," United News of Bangladesh quoted Yunus as saying through his Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam.

Yunus also briefed diplomats stationed in Dhaka for the first time since the interim government's inception, impressing on them that the country he took over was "in many ways a complete mess."

Yunus added that the top priority of the interim government would be to bring the law and order situation under control.

"We will be close to normalcy within a short period, with the unwavering support of our people and patriotic armed forces," Yunus said.

He sought the international community's support to rebuild Bangladesh.

On the Rohingya issue, he said the interim government will continue to support the million-plus Rohingya people sheltered in Bangladesh.

"We need sustained efforts of the international community for Rohingya humanitarian operations and their eventual repatriation to their homeland, Myanmar, with safety, dignity and full rights," Yunus said.

So the Nobel laureate seems to have a lot on his plate to fix before he could go for elections.

His real test is in restoring the economic growth which has taken a hit post-Covid and aggravated by mind-boggling corruption leading to huge bank defaults and unbridled money-laundering. Yunus has to firmly deal with these financial criminals, now that some of them like Hasina's adviser Salman F Rahman is in custody.

Bangladesh has the unsavoury example of the 2006-08 military-backed caretaker which went beyond its brief of holding polls within a few months and delayed it by two years . In fact, the Awami League used that example to put an end to the caretaker system by its overwhelming parliamentary majority secured in the Dec 2008 polls.

During the military backed caretaker regime, Yunus did try to launch his own political party but backed out . There is some speculation now that the 2024 student movement, which has created a perceptible mood for all-out change , may not only allow for reforms but also be the right moment to launch a new political party with Yunus at the helm to break the long binary of Bangladesh politics that has swung between the Awami League and the BNP-JAMAAT alliance. But if such a party were to fancy any chance at the hustings, Yunus' interim government has to deliver on some key areas like checking corruption and price rise . Changing faces in the administration will not be enough.

How the delay in elections will go down with global players remains to be seen. The US and the EU may be welcoming , specially if the Democrats continue in power in Washington . India may prefer an interim administration to a BNP-JAMAAT government until it gets its act together. China , which like India backed Hasina, may deal with whoever is in the saddle.