Sheikh Mujib’s memory erased from Bangladesh’s currency forever

POBNEWS24 Dhaka, June 3, 2025 : The Yunus government did not hesitate to erase the memory of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman forever. From breaking his statue to vandalizing various houses bearing his name, nothing was left out. This time Bangladesh has erased the image of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from its currency. The new currency has already reached the banks and is also being seen in the market.
Incidentally, in July-August, Mujib’s daughter Sheikh Hasina resigned from the post of Prime Minister and left the country due to the anti-quota student movement. Later, an interim government was formed under the leadership of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. However, even then, there is no sign of peace returning. On the contrary, Bangladesh has become more turbulent. There are continuous attacks on minority Hindus. Protests and demonstrations are going on everywhere. In this situation, Yunus’ Bangladesh has erased the image of Sheikh Mujib from its currency.
The Central Bank of Bangladesh has confirmed that the 20, 100, 500 and 1000 taka notes have been redesigned as per the instructions of the interim government. It is learnt that this is a 20,000 crore taka project to erase Bangabandhu! There are currently around 275,000 taka notes circulating in the Bangladesh market. And the entire currency supply including coins stands at 17,41,000 taka. However, against this, there is an unknown financial illusion in the name of ‘currency reform’.
When a nation is suffering from extreme inflation, increasing poverty and food and medical crisis, the government has printed new notes by spending 20,000 crore taka on the eve of the 2025 budget announcement! The reason? Because the old notes have the picture of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman!
Is this a reform? Or an invisible revenge? A trick to erase an ideal?
The money being printed is not just the ink facilities and machines of the printing press. This involves the cost of more than Tk 2.5 billion to replace the 40-year-old machine of the mint, a different design for each note, and the cost of printing each Tk 500 note at Tk 4.70 paisa – all in all, a huge financial loss.
According to the World Bank, 3 million people are now extremely poor – their daily income is below Tk 200. They want some food, some medicine, some place to lay their heads – what are we giving them? A piece of shiny paper!
The Yunus government says that this is a ‘necessary reform’. The question is – is reform the name of erasing history?
Where new notes with Bangabandhu’s picture are stopped during times like Eid, it is no longer just an economic decision, it is a symbol of political revenge.
Not notes, we are printing the responsibility of erasing a national memory – we are bearing the cost of implementing an unwritten decision of the Razakars to erase the history of Bangabandhu and the Liberation War from the new generation. This is what Jahangirnagar University professor Snigdha Rizwana was telling this Correspondent that about a heinous political decision to erase Bangabandhu’s mark. Meanwhile, the Yunus government presented its budget on Monday for the first time since Sheikh Hasina was ousted. It said that for the next two years, July revolutionaries will not have to pay any tax on their annual income up to Tk 5 lakh 25 thousand. On this day, Financial Advisor Salehuddin Ahmed presented the budget. While announcing the personal income tax rate, he announced a separate tax category for July revolutionaries. There will be an income tax exemption for anti-Hasina protesters for the next two years from the 2026-27 financial year. The freedom fighters of 1971 did not have to pay tax on their income up to Tk 5 lakh 25 thousand. The tax exemption limit has also been increased to Tk 5 lakh 25 thousand for them. On the other hand, more than Tk 405 crore has been allocated in the budget for the families of those who died and were injured in the anti-Hasina movement. This money will be used for the rehabilitation and development of the families of the protesters. A new policy will be formulated quickly so that the families of the dead and injured protesters receive regular grants. The financial advisor announced today that treatment arrangements will also be made for the injured. Expenditure on madrasa education has been increased. The Politburo of the Workers’ Party of Bangladesh said in a statement that the budget does not reflect all the words that the interim government said while in power. Although the reform government has a main agenda, the guidelines for basic economic reforms have not been observed in the budget. The IMF could not move away from its complacent policy. The social security program provision in this year’s budget is very nominal and the target population is also small. The target of national growth that has been set is like eating Polao Korma in a dream. The reason is the ongoing political adversities that will hinder stability in the coming days. The party strongly condemned the erasure of Sheikh Mujib’s picture and his memory. The Communist Party of Bangladesh has expressed similar strong condemnation.