There have been growing speculations about what comes next for Muhammad Yunus as his term as the chief advisor of the interim government of Bangladesh comes to an end.
Netizens talk about the possibilities of Yunus continuing with politics in a constitutional position, possibly with the support of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
Yunus was appointed as the Chief Advisor to the interim government after the fall of the Shiekh Hasina’s Awami League government.
BNP Chief Tarique Rahman is set to be sworn in as the country's prime minister on February 17th.
Humayun Kabir, a close associate of Rahman, while speaking to NDTV, said, “No one’s role has been finalised yet. No further decisions have been made regarding Mohamamd Yunus either. He is interested in governing the country inclusively, and he wants to use all the talents available to him if elected to government."
"There are many ways in which your expertise, your experience, your distinguished international stature can be utilised for the country. He didn't define any particular role, but post elections, at some convenient point, he is looking to consult some of the eminent citizens of the country, and as part of that, it is a norm that with Professor Yunus can have discussions," Kabir added.
Shafiqul Alam, Muhammad Yunus's Press Secretary, meanwhile, completely denied reports that Yunus would take up any role beyond his term as Chief Advisor.
His plan is to return to his old job. He would obviously like to spread his vision of three zeros (zero poverty, zero unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions). He travels across the world and talks about this vision. He is going to set up some new social business enterprises. He talks about it, and he has expressed his interest in working with the young people," he said
"He has zero interest in politics. No constitutional role, nothing. He wants to go back. He thought he was given a very important job at a crucial time for the country, and he steered the country towards peace and stability. He has achieved most of the goals that he had set. The power will be handed over to the new government," Shafiqul Alam said.
Mohammad Shahabudin is currently the president of Bangladesh.
"In politics, nothing is impossible,” Kabir said. "So, he (Tarique Rahman) is willing to play his best players and simply doesn't want to restrict his development vision simply serving party purposes.”
“If there is a need and he sees somebody has the expertise, he will bring the person onboard," Kabir said.
Columnist David Bergman, posted on X, said that a Yunus presidency could benefit Bangladesh. "Despite domestic criticism from certain groups, he continues to command considerable respect internationally, and no other Bangladeshi figure possesses comparable global stature. A domestic-focused Prime Minister operating with an internationally-minded President could be what the country needs," he said in the post.
Bergman also said that there were discussions about the presidency between Tarique and Yunus.
However, both Tarique Rahman's team and Muhammad Yunus's Press Secretary have denied that any such conversation has taken place.