BANGLADESH’S interim leader Muhammad Yunus on Saturday condemned attacks on the minority communities in the violence-hit nation, terming them as “heinous”, and urged the youth to protect all Hindu, Christian, and Buddhist families from harm. Members of minority communities in Bangladesh faced at least 205 incidents of attacks in 52 districts since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government on August 5, according to two Hindu organisations -- Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council and the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad -- in the country. Thousands of Bangladeshi Hindus have been trying to flee to neighbouring India to escape the violence. Reaching out to students who are at the forefront of the protests, Yunus, a Nobel laureate, cautioned them not to let their efforts be sabotaged by those seeking to undermine their progress, the Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported.

 

“There are many standing by to make your efforts futile. Don’t fail this time,” he said while addressing the students at the Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur city. Yunus unequivocally condemned the attacks on minority communities in the country, calling the acts “heinous”. He urged the students to protect all Hindu, Christian, and Buddhist families from harm. “Are they not the people of this country? You have been able to save the country; can’t you save some families?...You must say — no one can harm them. They are my brothers; we fought together, and we will stay together,” he asserted, underscoring the need for national unity. Stressing the importance of youth leadership, Yunus said, “This Bangladesh, is now in your hands. You have the power to take it wherever you want. This isn’t a matter of research — it’s a power within you.” He also urged the people of Bangladesh to emulate the way student activist Abu Sayed stood valiantly during the anti-government demonstrations that led to the toppling of the Sheikh Hasina government. Sayed, 25, of Rangpur’s Begum Rokeya University, was among the first protesters to be killed in police firing on July 16 during the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement. Yunus met with Sayed’s family in Rangpur’s Pirganj upazila, The Daily Star newspaper reported.