In the streets of Dhaka, Yunus’s supporters have launched a counteroffensive. Posters with slogans like “Reforms first, elections later” and “Keep Yunus in power for five years” blanket the capital.

In a week of political turmoil and rising public discontent, Nobel Laureate and Chief Adviser to Bangladesh’s interim government, Professor Muhammad Yunus, reportedly threatened to resign – an act many believe was less about stepping down and more a calculated move to tighten his grip on power.

Despite Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud’s assurance to the media on Saturday that “the chief adviser is not stepping down,” sources close to the interim government reveal a very different picture behind closed doors. Yunus, they say, is under increasing pressure from both Bangladesh’s political parties and the powerful military to hold general elections by the end of the year. His threat to resign is being viewed as a high-stakes tactic designed to delay elections and extend his rule.

Power Struggles Behind the Curtain

Yunus’s posturing has exposed deep fault lines in Bangladesh’s volatile political landscape. While his public stance remains that of a reformer intent on national stability, insiders suggest that the 84-year-old economist aims to stay in power for as long as five years. This, despite the interim government’s original promise to hold elections following the collapse of the Sheikh Hasina-led administration in August 2024.

“Professor Yunus has given a cut-off time. He won’t go beyond June next year,” Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam told reporters. But even this deadline is being met with scepticism, especially as Yunus delays a concrete election roadmap while reportedly exploring controversial policy proposals, chief among them, a proposed ‘Rohingya Corridor’, said to be backed by the United States and the UN.

The army, which played a key role in ushering in the interim setup, has grown wary of Yunus’s intentions. Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman bluntly dismissed the corridor proposal as a “bloody corridor” during internal discussions with top brass. Military sources confirm that Yunus was privately told that any such strategic decision should come from an elected government, not an unelected caretaker regime.

Mounting Political and Public Pressure

Yunus’s crisis deepened after a closed-door meeting of the advisory council on Saturday. Convened immediately after the executive committee of the national economic council (Ecnec) session, it saw all non-advisory officials asked to leave the room. The resulting two-hour discussion focused on growing calls for national elections and Yunus’s alleged wavering under pressure.

Opposition parties have shown little trust in Yunus’s leadership. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), now the largest active party after the Awami League was banned, has repeatedly accused the interim administration of stalling elections. “An extremely well-planned conspiracy is on to delay holding of elections,” charged BNP Secretary-General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.

A BNP delegation led by senior leader Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain demanded a clear roadmap for elections by December. “We discussed reforms, trials and elections,” Mosharraf told the press after a meeting with Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna. “We expected this government to propose a reform based on consensus.”

Calling for early elections, BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has said the interim administration is bound to heed the people’s rightful demands, stressing that there is no place for the government’s hard feelings or “affection or ill will” in this regard.

While BNP is pushing for December polls, other parties such as Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP) have taken a softer stance. Jamaat indicated openness to elections in June 2026, while the NCP called for annulment of all polls held under the Awami League – moves seen by analysts as veiled attempts to undercut BNP ambitions, particularly the political aspirations of BNP’s Dhaka leader Ishrak Hossain.

This divergence is likely to fuel further infighting among opposition parties, preventing a united front against the interim government. The advisory council, meanwhile, has issued a veiled warning: if obstructed, it might take “necessary decisions”. This language has sparked concern about potential authoritarian drift.

Yunus’s Support Base and Street Protests

In the streets of Dhaka, Yunus’s supporters have launched a counteroffensive. Posters with slogans like “Reforms first, elections later” and “Keep Yunus in power for five years” blanket the capital. A pro-Yunus rally dubbed the ‘March For Yunus’ on Sunday, reflects the support he continues to enjoy among certain elite and reformist circles, as well as segments of Islamist groups.

However, this public relations campaign may do little to calm an increasingly restive population. Discontent has been simmering over the government’s failure to address economic stagnation, corruption, and the opaque decision-making process. For many, Yunus’s reluctance to commit to elections is seen as a betrayal of the interim government’s original mandate.

Yunus is expected to meet with eight more political parties over the coming days, but consensus remains elusive. With the military growing impatient and political parties demanding elections, Yunus finds himself cornered.

While he may continue to publicly deny any intention of resigning, the larger story appears to be one of calculated brinkmanship. By threatening to quit, Yunus has attempted to force his critics to back off and buy time. Whether this gambit works remains uncertain.

Bangladesh is now at a political crossroads. A failure to chart a transparent path toward elections could spark further unrest and erode the credibility of an interim government that was supposed to stabilise, not seize, power.

A Foreign Policy Faultline

The proposed Rohingya Corridor has added fuel to the fire. Yunus’s critics claim the project, allegedly endorsed by the US, compromises Bangladesh’s sovereignty. The military’s opposition to it was reportedly a tipping point in Yunus’s recent manoeuvring.

This geopolitical flashpoint already claimed one casualty – the resignation of the Foreign Secretary earlier this week, reportedly over differences regarding the corridor plan.

Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, currently in exile, released a scathing audio message accusing Yunus of turning Bangladesh into a puppet state. “He has seized power with the help of terrorists,” she said, adding that her constitutionally mandated Awami League party was banned illegally. Hasina accused Yunus of “selling the country to the United States” and endangering Bangladesh’s sovereignty.