Awami League rejects its ban by Bangladesh interim govt, vows to continue operations
Dhaka/New Delhi, May 11 (PTI): Bangladesh's deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League on Sunday rejected "with disgust" the interim government's decision to ban the party and vowed to continue its operations despite the restriction.
The Muhammad Yunus-led interim government’s Council of Advisers or the Cabinet on Saturday night slapped a ban on “all activities of Awami League”, including in cyberspace, under an anti-terrorism law.
Reacting to the move, in a strongly worded statement posted on X, the Awami League said, “We are rejecting and protesting the fascist autocrat Yunus government’s decision with disgust...Awami League will carry on its activities in an appropriate course, defying the decision of the fascist Yunus government.”
The party regretted that “today’s independent Bangladesh” had to witness the ban on Awami League activities by an “undemocratic fascist” government that now runs the country “without people's mandate”, while the country “earned independence and sovereignty under its (Awami League’s) leadership”.
Formed in 1949, the Awami League led the movement for the autonomy of Bengalis in the then East Pakistan for decades and eventually led the Liberation War in 1971.
The statement said the ban is meant to “exile the spirit, ideals, and core values of the Liberation War and to empower the vulgar resurgence of anti-independence elements” and “only an anti-state and anti-independence evil force alone”.
“We strongly believe that the people of Bangladesh will deliver a resounding response to this reckless decision by the fascist Yunus regime. We call upon all leaders and activists of Awami League to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people and build a total resistance against this incoherent and anti-people decision,” it said.
Awami League also called upon all democratic states, institutions, and leaders around the world to denounce the decision taken by the Yunus government.
Earlier in the day, Yunus’s press secretary Shafiqul Alam in a media briefing said the democratic world was unlikely to oppose the interim government's decision to ban “this shameless, killer, anti-democracy, and corrupt party”.
He said there are instances of the Western world banning political parties for their activities against the national interest and for committing crimes against humanity, like the Nazi and Fascist parties of Germany and Italy.
“So we don’t expect any negative international reaction over the ban on Awami League activities,” Alam said.
The Election Commission (EC) has said it is awaiting a formal government notification to decide on scrapping the registration of the Awami League.
According to Bangladesh law, if the Awami League's registration with the EC is cancelled, it will be disqualified from contesting the general election, which could be held between December 2025 and June 2026.
“We will have to decide going with the spirit of the present Bangladesh," Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin told reporters here.
Hasina’s 16-year-long Awami League regime was toppled on August 5 last year in a student-led violent mass uprising, prompting the 77-year-old former prime minister to flee to India.
Three days after her ouster, Yunus took charge as the chief adviser of the interim government.
Hasina and many of her party leaders have been facing hundreds of cases, including those of mass murder and corruption, since then. Most of her party leaders and ministers in her government have either been arrested or fled abroad.
The announcement to ban Hasina’s Awami League came after the student-led newly-floated National Citizen Party (NCP) activists rallied since Thursday and carried out blockades across Dhaka demanding the ban.
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Jamshedpur man among crew of LPG vessel back from West Asia, family heaves sigh of relief
Jamshedpur (PTI): A family in Jharkhand's Jamshedpur heaved a sigh of relief after learning that the Indian-flagged LPG vessel Shivalik, on which their son was working, had safely reached Gujarat's Mundra port after crossing the Strait of Hormuz amid the conflict in West Asia.
Mithilesh Tripathy said his only son, Ansh Tripathy, who serves as the second engineer on the vessel, was responsible for monitoring the ship's technical operations during the journey through the strategically crucial maritime corridor.
Tripathy said he last spoke to his son over a WhatsApp call about four to five days ago, when the vessel was leaving Qatar.
"They were instructed to maintain a safe distance from the Strait of Hormuz until they received the green signal from headquarters. The Indian government was negotiating with Iranian authorities to ensure safe passage," Tripathy told PTI.
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A former flight engineer with the Indian Air Force, Tripathy later worked at Uranium Corporation of India in Jadugora near Jamshedpur. He now lives in a residential society near Pardih in the city.
Speaking about his son, Tripathy said Ansh completed his schooling in Jamshedpur and Jadugora, pursued mechanical engineering at BIT, and later graduated as a marine engineer from Kochi. He joined the Shipping Corporation of India around 2014-15.
"Before leaving Qatar, Ansh told me they were heading towards the Indian Ocean. That was all he said," he added, noting that he did not discuss the number of crew members on board.
Tripathy said the family remained anxious after hearing about the war in West Asia.
"We were extremely worried about Ansh and the crew members since the war broke out in the region. We were glued to the TV for updates," he said, expressing relief after hearing that the ship had reached Mundra port safely.
"It was a very painful time, but we were confident that if my son and the crew returned safely, it would be due to the efforts of PM Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar," he said.
Tripathy said that while people may hold different views about the tensions in West Asia, his experience in the Air Force helped him understand the realities of operating in a conflict zone.
Two Indian-flagged LPG carriers, Shivalik and Nanda Devi, with 92,712 metric tonnes of LPG, crossed the Strait of Hormuz early on Saturday following negotiations between India and Iran.
Shivalik arrived at the Mundra Port on Monday with 46,000 metric tonnes of LPG ordered by Indian Oil Corp Ltd, officials said.
While 20,000 MT will be unloaded at Mundra, 26,000 MT will be unloaded at Mangaluru, they said.
Nanda Devi is scheduled to reach Gujarat's Kandla port on Tuesday, they added.
These two ships were among the 24 ships stranded on the west side of the strait since the war broke out in the region.
Besides the 24 on the west side of the strait, four others were stranded on the east side.
India imports about 88 per cent of its crude oil, 50 per cent of its natural gas and 60 per cent of its LPG needs. Before the US-Israel strikes on Iran on February 28 and Tehran's retaliation, more than half of India's crude imports, about 30 per cent of gas and 85-90 per cent of LPG imports came from West Asian countries such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
The conflict has led to a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the main transit route for Gulf energy supplies.
