'Yunus supporting fundamentalists': Exiled author Taslima Nasrin slams Bangladesh leader; says Hindus in 'very bad' situation

NEW DELHI: Exiled Bangladeshi-Swedish author Taslima Nasrin on Friday alleged that Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh’s interim leader, has aligned himself with “fundamentalists” who are effectively running the country.“The fundamentalists are in power and Dr Yunus is supporting them. I do not know how we will restore this secular country, for which it fought against Pakistan in 1971,” Nasrin said at an event in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram,. “Now the nation is divided, and Muslim extremists are killing and persecuting religious minority communities. This must be stopped.” In recent days, and since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina–led Awami League government in August 2024, after which the caretaker administration took charge, Bangladesh has witnessed multiple incidents in which Hindus have been killed.The Yunus administration has consistently denied that minorities are under threat, stressing that not all incidents were communally motivated, and distancing itself from allegations of targeted violence.Nasrin, however, said the situation was “very bad for Hindus in Bangladesh,” accusing Yunus of failing to act against what she described as “the killers, the fundamentalists and jihadis.”She also recalled the circumstances that forced her to leave Bangladesh in 1994 following the publication of her book Lajja.“When religious fanatics and extremists threatened my life and issued fatwas against me over my books, the government at the time took no action against them and instead issued an arrest warrant against me,” Nasrin told the audience. “Had the authorities acted against the fanatics and jihadists then, the country would not be in such a bad state today. The government used religion for political interests and to stay in power as long as possible.”Nasrin also expressed hope that Bangladesh’s next general election would be “free and fair,” adding that meaningful change would come only if a “pro-secular party” came to power.The next general election in India’s neighbouring country is scheduled for February 12.(With PTI inputs)