B'desh Prez dissolves parl; elections ahead

Dhaka: Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin dissolved Parliament on Tuesday paving the way for fresh elections and an interim government was taking shape, a day after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina abruptly resigned and fled the country following weeks of violent anti-government protests.

As the army took charge on Monday and the death toll in the violence in which temples were also attacked rose to 440, the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement that spearheaded the massive protests said 84-year-old Nobel laureate Mohammad Yunus has agreed to head the interim government.

Hasina, 76, is currently In India. A number of Hindu temples, households and businesses were vandalised, women assaulted and at least two Hindu leaders affiliated with the Awami League party that is headed by Hasina were killed in the violence in Bangladesh after she fled the country, according to two community leaders in Dhaka.

President Shahabuddin met the key coordinators of the student movement at Bangabhaban(presidential palace) in the evening to discuss the current situation and the shape of the interim government, media reports said.

"A group of 13 members of the anti-discrimination student movement is holding a meeting with the President and the three armed forces chiefs at Bangabhaban regarding the current situation and the shape of the interim government," Bengali language daily Prothom Alo reported, citing one of the coordinators.

Hasina landed at Hindon airbase on Monday in a Bangladesh military aircraft and she is unlikely to move out of India for the next couple of days.

Hasina sought nod at 'very short notice' to come to India

Union minister for external affairs S. Jaishankar said in parliament on Tuesday that former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina requested approval at a “very short notice” to come to India “for the moment”.

In his address delivered separately to the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha, Jaishankar said the government is in touch with authorities in Bangladesh and is “monitoring the situation with regard to status of minorities”.

Jaishankar said that the situation in Bangladesh is “still evolving” and that the Indian government is in close contact with the Indian community in Bangladesh.

UK, US refuse refuge to former PM

Trouble is mounting for ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina with both the United Kingdom and the US refusing to accommodate her, even temporarily.

Media reports say the US has called for fixing accountability for torture and killings of protesters in Bangladesh.