Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of the interim
government, condemned the attacks on minorities,
Bangladesh’s Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan resigned on Saturday amid protests by students who demanded his resignation as well as a restructuring of the country’s judiciary. Two Appellate Division judges also resigned, according to Supreme Court sources. The students had given a two-hour ultimatum for the resignation of the Chief Justice and other justices of the Appellate Division, who they said were loyal to the Awami League.

Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor A.S.M. Maksud Kamal, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) Vice-Chancellor Farid Uddin Ahmed, and Bangla Academy Director-General Md Harun-Ur-Rashid Askari too stepped down from their posts on Saturday.

Thousands of protesters, including students and members of the Hindu community, staged a demonstration in Dhaka for the second consecutive day, demanding safety. They warned that if immediate steps were not taken to stop the persecution of Hindus, they would initiate continuous protest programmes.

Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of the interim government, condemned the attacks on minorities, calling them “heinous” and urged students to protect all Hindu, Christian, and Buddhist families from harm. According to the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council and the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, at least 205 incidents of attacks on minorities have occurred across 52 districts since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government on August 5. Here’s how the revolt unfolded.

Rana Dasgupta, general secretary of the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Oikya Parishad, told The Hindu that some of those whose homes were attacked may be directly involved in Awami League politics, but 98% are ordinary Hindus. Against the backdrop of the violence against religious and ethnic communities in Bangladesh, the Congress too called upon the interim government to take “forceful steps” to deal with the situation.

Meanwhile, as the turmoil in Bangladesh caused tension for Indian textile firms invested there, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expressed hope that the interim government will restore normalcy “sooner than later”. The Hindu’s Suhasini Haidar explains how Sheikh Hasina’s exit could further impact India.