A caretaker, not a political contender: What next for Yunus after Bangladesh elections?

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Student revolt breaks out in Bangladesh after more than a year Sheikh Hasina came to India in exile And Yunus’ move to Dhaka to lead the government on an interim basis stands at a historic crossroads.

Yunus has consistently stressed that his role is to oversee a smooth transition to an elected government, and not to remain a political figure beyond the elections. He has publicly stated that he has “no desire to be part of the next elected government” and that neither he nor his advisers intend to retain power after the vote. What’s next for Younes?

Muhammad Yunus He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 with Grameen Bank for his work “building economic and social development from below”. Since its inception in 1983, Grameen Bank’s objective has been to provide small loans, so-called microcredit, to poor people on easy terms, and Yunus was the founder of the bank.

After studies in Bangladesh and the United States, Yunus was appointed Professor of Economics at Chittagong University in 1972. When Bangladesh was suffering from famine in 1974, Yunus decided to do something more for the poor beyond just teaching, by giving long-term loans to people who wanted to start their own small enterprises. According to nobelprize.org, the initiative was scaled up largely through the Grameen Bank.

For Yunus, poverty means deprivation of all human values. He considers microcredit both a human right and an effective means of emerging from poverty: “Lend the poor an amount of money appropriate for them, teach them some basic financial principles, and they generally manage on their own,” Yunus claims.

Relations between India and Bangladesh became tense after the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government came to power following the fall of the Hasina government.

Also read: Sheikh Hasina’s ouster in key elections: A look at 2 years of turmoil for Bangladesh

Traditional support bases have fragmented: many loyal voters have become alienated or are considering abstaining from voting, while other parties such as the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat-e-Islami have emerged as major rivals.

Rising communal tensions and violence, particularly against minority groups, have drawn both domestic criticism and international concern, complicating the credibility of the interim government. Communal tensions have increased in the country, especially after the assassination of Sharif Osman Hadi, a prominent student leader of Inquilab Moncho, in December last year.

This volatile backdrop requires a non-partisan Yunus to manage security, impartiality and public trust in a highly polarized environment.

Yunus, who returned from exile in August 2024 to lead a caretaker government as a “chief adviser” on the orders of protesters, will step down after the elections.

Yunus said he inherited a “totally broken” political system, and supported a reform charter, which he argued was vital to prevent a return to authoritarian rule, with a referendum on changes being held on the same day as voting.

“If you vote ‘yes’, the door will open to the creation of a new Bangladesh,” Yunus said in a broadcast to the nation on January 19, urging support for the referendum, according to the AFP news agency.

Also read: Hindu businessman stabbed to death in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, three days before voting

He urged for complete security at polling stations, including increased police measures to deal with violence and disruptions during elections.

Yunus warned of “internal and external efforts” to sabotage the elections, reflecting concerns over propaganda and interference.

“If you vote ‘yes’, the door will open to the creation of a new Bangladesh,” AFP news agency quoted Yunus as saying on January 19 in a broadcast to the nation urging support for the referendum.

He also warned that he was concerned about the “impact” of an increase in disinformation.

Yunus blamed both “foreign media and local sources”, saying “they have flooded social media with fake news, rumors and speculations.”

While these steps highlight Yunus’s balancing act – providing a credible democratic process while battling a fractured political system and social unrest – not everyone accepts his roadmap without hesitation.

Political parties have accused him of making confusing or “misleading” comments on election deadlines. Sheikh Hasina’s Bangladesh Awami League has rejected the election schedule announced by the country’s interim government for February 12, 2026, calling the EC’s move “illegal” and accusing the Yunus-led government of being a “murderer-fascist” faction that cannot ensure free and fair voting.

In a strongly worded statement issued on Thursday, the Awami League, after the election date was announced in December last year, said it had “closely reviewed the election schedule announced by the illegitimate election commission of the illegal, occupying, murderous-fascist Yunus faction” and declared that the current administration cannot ensure transparency, neutrality or reflection of the will of the people.

“Bangladesh Awami League has closely reviewed the election schedule announced by the illegal election commission of the illegal, occupying, murderous-fascist Yunus faction. It is now clear that the present occupying authority is completely biased and under their control, it is impossible to ensure a fair and normal environment where transparency, neutrality and the will of the people can be reflected. Elections are the measure of public popularity. Awami League is an election-oriented party. Awami League has Have strength, courage and capability. Stand before the people,” Hasina’s party had said.

Increasing violent incidents related to political rivalry have increased fears that the country could again slide towards instability. In her first public address from India, Hasina had accused the Yunus government of sending democracy into “exile” and allowing human rights violations, violence against minorities as well as sexual harassment against women.

He had said, “Human rights have been left in the dust. Freedom of the press has been abolished. Violence against women and girls, torture and sexual harassment are rampant.” “Religious minorities continue to face persecution. Law and order has collapsed.”

Yunus’s credibility – and the legitimacy of the election – will largely depend on his ability to defuse these tensions and ensure broad participation.

Whether Yunus is remembered as a stabilizing force or a caretaker mired in systemic dysfunction will only emerge with time. Her leadership is not just about managing elections: it is about setting the tone for the post-Hasina political architecture of Bangladesh.

Bangladesh’s leading prime ministerial contender is 60-year-old Tariq Rahman, who heads the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). He returned home in December after nearly two decades in exile in London, when a youth-led rebellion ousted longtime leader Sheikh Hasina, a staunch rival of his mother and the country’s first female prime minister, Khaleda Zia.

Jiah died on December 30 last year at the age of 80.

The BNP’s main rival in the February 12 election is the Islamist group Jamaat-e-Islami, which was once banned but is now resurgent.