Muhammad Yunus

Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus dismissed widespread reports of violence against Hindus in the country, describing them as “fake news.”In an interview with journalist Mehdi Hasan, Yunus flatly rejected allegations that his government had failed to protect religious minorities. “First of all, these are fake news. You can’t go by those. Fake news,” Yunus said when pressed about demonstrations by Hindus and international criticism, including US president Donald Trump’s comments last year that violence in Bangladesh was “barbaric.”When Hasan cited reports of mob attacks, vandalism, and the arrest of a Hindu monk for raising a religious flag, Yunus doubled down and making a wild claim about India: “One of the specialty of India right now is fake news. Okay, barrage of fake news.”Hasan asked whether Yunus was denying any rise in anti-Hindu violence since his government took office following the August 2024 revolution. Yunus insisted there had been no increase, arguing that incidents described as religious persecution were in fact ordinary disputes.“There is a normal kind of relationship that goes on. There’s some conflict sometimes… You happen to be my neighbour. You are a Hindu neighbour, I’m a Muslim neighbour. We have problem with our land demarcation, just like two neighbours. So you said this is Hindu, Muslim. That’s not it,” he said.He added that his government remained “very alert” to prevent communal tensions, saying India often used the issue to pressure Bangladesh. Asked about his message to Hindus, Yunus replied: “My message to them always… don’t go back and say I’m a Hindu, so protect me. Always say, I’m a citizen of this country. I’m entitled to all the protection state is supposed to give it to me.”The comments have been met with sharp criticism from the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad, which called Yunus’s remarks a “denial of the truth.” The group, which has long campaigned against religious discrimination, said it had already raised concerns directly with Yunus in August about ongoing violence.Referring to the UN Fact-Finding Mission’s report of February 2025, the organisation stressed that attacks on Hindus and other minorities “continue sporadically and in isolated incidents across the country.”The Parishad also noted Yunus had previously admitted to such persecution in an interview with NPR last year, which was later reported by Bangladeshi daily Prothom Alo. It accused him of backtracking in international forums to deflect criticism.