Bangladesh awaits formation of interim government

Bangladesh’s army chief will meet student protest leaders on Tuesday as the country awaits the formation of a new government a day after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled following a violent uprising against her.

Bangladesh army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman plans to meet the protest organisers at 12 noon local time (0600 GMT) on Tuesday.

He has decided to immediately release opposition party leader Bangladesh Nationalist party president Begum Khaleda Zia.

Garment factories, which supply apparel to some of world’s top brands and are a mainstay of the economy, will remain closed on Tuesday and plans to reopen will be announced later, the main garment manufacturers association said.

Student leaders, who spearheaded the anti-quota movement that turned into a call for Hasina to resign, said early on Tuesday they want Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus as the chief adviser to the interim government.

Yunus, 84, and his Grameen Bank won the 2006 Nobel Peace prize for work to lift millions out of poverty by granting tiny loans of under $100 to the rural poor of Bangladesh but he was indicted by a court in June on charges of embezzlement that he denied.

In a related development, Hasina has sought temporary refuge in India.

The Indian Express newspaper reported that Hasina was taken to a “safe house” after her arrival at Hindon and she was likely to travel to the United Kingdom.