In a significant diplomatic rebuff, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has reportedly declined to meet Muhammad Yunus, the Chief Advisor of Bangladesh’s interim government, who is currently on a four-day visit to the United Kingdom.
UK government sources, as cited in several media reports, confirmed that Starmer has no plans to meet Yunus during his visit.
The Prime Minister’s office has refrained from commenting further on the decision.
Meanwhile, Yunus did hold a meeting with UK National Security Advisor Jonathan Powell at his London hotel on Wednesday.
Bangladeshi media had speculated widely about a potential meeting between Yunus and Starmer, fueling heightened interest in his UK visit.
However, in an interview with a British daily, Yunus acknowledged that no such meeting had been confirmed.
The visit has sparked significant controversy, with hundreds of demonstrators gathering at Heathrow Airport and outside Yunus’s Central London hotel upon his arrival.
Protesters, many affiliated with the UK branch of Bangladesh’s Awami League, carried black flags and banners accusing Yunus of undermining Bangladesh’s Liberation War heroes and promoting militancy.
Slogans such as “Go Back Yunus” and demands for his prosecution were prominent.
Eyewitnesses reported that some protesters hurled shoes and eggs at Yunus’s convoy as it moved from the airport to his hotel.
The demonstrators also called for the release of detained Hindu priest Chinmoy Krishna Das, claiming that Yunus should instead face trial for alleged abuses under his administration.
Adding to the backlash, the Awami League’s UK branch sent a formal letter to British authorities, including Downing Street and the Commonwealth Secretariat, urging them not to recognise Yunus’s government.
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The letter criticised Yunus’s administration for alleged political repression, economic mismanagement, and human rights violations in Bangladesh, warning that any engagement with his regime could undermine democratic principles.
Yunus’s visit continues to generate tensions, highlighting the deep divisions within Bangladeshi politics and the challenges facing the interim government.
