Bangladesh President accuses Md Yunus of coup plot

Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin accused former chief adviser Muhammad Yunus of repeatedly failing to follow constitutional procedures. In an interview with a Bangla Daily, he criticised Yunus for issuing several ordinances without adequate justification, despite some emergency measures being needed. The President revealed that Yunus never briefed him after returning from foreign trips, violating constitutional requirements. During this period, the president received strong support from the armed forces, who pledged to protect constitutional continuity. He also said that leaders from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, including acting chairman Tarique Rahman, supported him. Shahabuddin claimed there were attempts to remove him from office unconstitutionally, but these efforts were thwarted. He recalled the unrest on 22 October 2024, protests outside Bangabhaban as a "terrifying night", saying mobs were mobilised, and there were attempts to loot the presidential residence, which were eventually brought under control with military deployment.
There have been many attempts to permanently destroy the peace and order of the country and create a constitutional vacuum, he said and alleged that he was made a palace prisoner in the past one and a half years, and two of his planned foreign visits -- to Kosovo and Qatar -- were blocked by the Yunus administration. On being asked whether he had been aware of the last agreement concluded with the United States by the interim government ahead of the elections, the President said he had no knowledge of it, and such developments should have been formally communicated to him.