The appointment of new advisers to the interim government of Bangladesh has been strongly criticized. Some of them are allegedly associated with the extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir (HuT). The appointment came at a time when the country was going through an ongoing security situation and economic crisis. In particular, student organizations agitating for the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina’s government have also expressed concern against this appointment.
The three new advisors sworn in last Sunday evening include businessman Bashir Uddin, filmmaker Mostafa Sarwar Faruqi, and Mahfuz Alam, who is the chief advisor. Muhammad is serving as Special Assistant to Yunus. Mahfuz Alam’s name is particularly hot because of his alleged links to the extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir. Alam previously served as Special Secretary to the Principal Adviser.
Besides, sources said that some of the newly appointed advisors have links with HuT. HuT, which is banned in many countries including Bangladesh, was once active under Bangladesh’s BNP-Jamaat coalition government and was working to establish an Islamic caliphate. Currently, other extremist groups like Hefajat-e-Islam and Ansarullah Bangla Team are also under surveillance by security agencies.
Student leaders have also criticized the appointment of new advisors, especially those who have been agitating for the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina’s government. Sarjis Alam, coordinator of the “Anti-discrimination student movement” commented on Facebook, “13 advisors have been appointed from one department! But there is no adviser from 16 districts of Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions of North Bengal! Furthermore, the killer Hasina’s henchmen are being advisers!”
Ashrafa Khatun, another coordinator, said, “The government does not care about us, but the people blame us. If a revolutionary government had been formed, this would not have happened.”
Now the question is – which direction is the interim government of Bangladesh going? The appointment of new advisers to the allegations of extremist groups has raised major concerns for the security situation in Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, analyzing the Facebook post of Mahfuz Alam, the truth of the words of The Economic Times can be confirmed. An analysis of one such post by Mahfuz Alam was published in BD Digest.
