Dhaka | June 2025 — A damning new report from the Bangladesh Mahila Parishad has laid bare the alarming rise in gender-based violence across the country, reinforcing public fears that rape and abuse have become common occurrences under the Yunus-backed interim regime. The report, based on national media coverage from 2024, paints a grim picture of a society where women—especially from minority communities—are increasingly unprotected, unheard, and unsafe.Among the most horrifying recent incidents is the rape and public stripping of a Hindu woman in Muradnagar, Comilla, captured on video and widely circulated online. The brutality of the act and the state’s silence have fueled nationwide outrage and reignited accusations of impunity under the current administration.According to the Mahila Parishad report: • A total of 2,525 cases of violence against women and girls were reported in the media in 2024. • 516 women and girls were raped, of whom 367 were minors. • 142 cases involved gang rape. • 23 victims were raped and then murdered. • A number of victims died by suicide following sexual assault, unable to endure the trauma or social stigma.Women’s rights groups argue that these figures reflect only the tip of the iceberg. Countless survivors remain silent due to fear, shame, and the futility of seeking justice in a system that seems increasingly indifferent.“The current regime, propped up by the international stature of Dr. Muhammad Yunus, has overseen a climate of impunity,” said one women’s rights activist. “While Yunus is celebrated abroad, at home women are being brutalized and abandoned by the state.”Activists are particularly concerned about the targeting of minority women, like the Hindu victim in Comilla, as part of a broader pattern of communal and gendered violence. Perpetrators are often shielded by political influence or law enforcement connections, creating what critics describe as a “rape regime protected by silence.”Dr. Yunus, once hailed as a global symbol of peace and social justice, has drawn harsh criticism for his continued silence amid these atrocities. Though he holds no formal office, his behind-the-scenes influence over the interim government has made him a central figure in the ongoing political and social crisis.“Under the Yunus-backed administration, law and order have collapsed, institutions have been politicized, and women’s bodies have become battlegrounds,” said a South Asian policy analyst.The Mahila Parishad, alongside other human rights bodies, is calling for an international investigation into the rising cases of gender-based violence and the apparent collapse of justice in Bangladesh. Global pressure is also mounting on the United Nations and foreign governments to reassess their engagement with the current regime.As the nation mourns yet another atrocity, many ask:How can a government with Nobel credentials stand silent while women bleed in silence?
