Hundreds of people protest in front of the Supreme Court calling for the resignation of Obaidul Hassan, seen as loyal to former Prime Minister Hasina.
The chief justice of Bangladesh’s top court said he agreed “in principle” to resign following an ultimatum from protesters, days after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to neighboring India.
Obaidul Hassan, who was appointed to head the Supreme Court last year and is seen as a Hasina loyalist, was told to resign on Saturday by protesters who gathered outside the court in the capital, Dhaka.
Al Jazeera’s Tanvir Chowdhury, reporting from Dhaka, said students decided to take to the streets when they heard reports that Hassan was holding a meeting with judges from the Appellate Division.
“They considered this as an ongoing judicial coup, so they quickly gathered at the Supreme Court and demanded that he resign immediately,” Chowdhury said.
A formal letter confirming Hassan’s decision to resign was expected after consultations with President Mohammed Shahabuddin. The students believe the Supreme Court is highly politicized and want the other seven members to resign as well, according to Chowdhury.
Awami League party leader Hasina, 76, fled to India by helicopter on Monday. His government has been accused of widespread human rights violations, including the extrajudicial killing of thousands of his political opponents.
Hassan oversaw a much-criticized war crimes court that ordered the execution of Hasina’s opponents, and his brother was its longtime secretary.
Ministers who were caught off guard by his sudden downfall were thrown into disarray, while several senior appointees were forced from office, including the head of the national police and the governor of the central bank.
On Friday, the bank’s governor, Abdur Rouf Talukder, resigned from his position, citing personal reasons. Protesters stormed the central bank headquarters amid political unrest that led to the end of Hasina’s 15-year rule.
Muhammad Yunus, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his pioneering work in microfinance, which was credited with helping millions of Bangladeshis lift themselves out of poverty, is leading a transitional government, another demand from student leaders.
The economist took office on Thursday as “chief advisor” to a provisional administration made up of civilians, except for a retired brigadier general. He said he wants to hold elections “within a few months.”
Yunus appealed for religious unity on Saturday as he hugged the tearful mother of the first student shot by police during anti-government protests last month.
“Don’t differentiate by religion,” he told reporters. “Our responsibility is to build a new Bangladesh.”
Speaking of Abu Sayeed, Yunus said the murdered 25-year-old was now “in every house”.
“The way he positioned himself, we have to do the same,” he said when paying his respects alongside members of the advisory cabinet.
“There are no differences in Abu Sayeed’s Bangladesh,” he added.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
