Bangladesh's interim government considering banning Awami League

Dhaka [Bangladesh], May 9 (ANI): Bangladesh's interim government, headed by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus, is seriously considering banning Sheikh Hasina's Awami League (the oldest existing political party in the country), the interim government said in a statement on Friday.
"The government is seriously considering the recent demands from various political parties, organisations and the public to ban the Awami League on charges of dictatorship and terrorist activities", the statement said.
"The government has already established contact with political parties in this regard and will decide soon after discussing with them. In this regard, the government is taking into consideration the UN report on terrorist activities of Awami League leaders and supporters", the statement said.
Further, the statement urged everyone to be "patient" and noted that the government has already banned the terrorist organisation Chhatra League under the existing law, "respecting public demand."
"In addition, initiatives have been taken to bring necessary amendments to the International Criminal Court Act to take action against organisations involved in crimes against humanity on behalf of the government", the statement added.
"The government is aware of the public anger over the foreign travel of former President of the fascist government and accused in the murder case Abdul Hamid. The statement said that the government is determined to take appropriate legal action against all involved in this incident", the statement said.
However, Several political parties and groups in Bangladesh, including the National Citizens Party (NCP), Jamaat-e-Islami and others, are protesting by surrounding the residence of Muhammad Yunus, the Chief Adviser to the interim government, demanding a ban on the Awami League.
Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted from power in a mass uprising on August 5 last year. She is currently in exile. After Sheikh Hasina's fall, an interim government was formed under the leadership of Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus.
Almost all Awami League leaders and workers are currently in hiding. Although the party's veteran leader, former President of Bangladesh, Abdul Hamid, is under the radar, he flew to Bangkok with his wife and brother-in-law early Thursday morning.
The protest, which began at 10 pm on Thursday in front of the Jamuna, the residence of the interim government's Chief Adviser, demanding a ban on the Awami League, is still ongoing.
NCP's convener, Nahid Islam, said, "The first responsibility of the interim government was to ban the Awami League. We have made that demand both inside and outside the government. But today, nine months later, we have had to take to the streets again to ban the Awami League."
The protesters are chanting the slogan "Ban, ban, ban Awami League." They are writing slogans on the road surface with their demands. Traffic has been stopped on the road in front of the Jamuna. A large number of army and police have been deployed. Although processions and gatherings are prohibited on the road in front of the Jamuna, law enforcement agencies are allowing the protesters to hold protests.
"Jamuna is the headquarters of the interim government and is where Chief Adviser Yunus resides. We saw that the former President, an ally of the Awami League, was given a safe exit yesterday. We want the Awami League to be banned completely. It is not possible for a party that committed genocide to exist in Bangladesh. We have taken a stand here demanding that the Awami League be banned", a protester told ANI.
While various groups, including the NCP, are demanding a ban on the Awami League, one of the largest political parties, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leaders say they do not support the banning of any political party.
Awami League is the oldest existing political party in Bangladesh, founded on June 23, 1949. The party led the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971. (ANI)