WE HAVE TO BUILD A NEW BANGLADESH OUT OF THIS DISASTER

At 84, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus is at the helm of a transitional government in Bangladesh—a country grappling with political upheaval, shattered institutions and the hopes of a restless generation.

- BY NAMRATA BIJI AHUJA/DHAKA PHOTOS BY SALIL BERA

For many, it's an unexpected turn in the life of a man best known not for politics, but for reinventing banking, winning global acclaim and challenging economic orthodoxy.

One of the founding members of The Elders—an international NGO once chaired by Nelson Mandela—Yunus grew up in the tiny village of Bathua in Chittagong. His father, Haji Muhammad Dula Mia Shawdagar, ran a small shop and would often bring in little Yunus to teach him the basics of economics. These would be the principles the boy would later apply in radically different ways.

As a Boy Scout, Yunus loved joining the other children in camping, cooking and crossing oceans to see new lands. It was a skill that he kept as he grew, finding alternative solutions and giving birth to creativity out of complexity.

Today, sitting at Jamuna State Guest House in Dhaka—the seat of power handed to him by the very youngsters who overthrew the powerful Sheikh Hasina regime—Yunus is at the wheel; Bangladesh is at a crossroads.

For his own people, Yunus is the man holding the magic wand of reform that can usher in free and fair elections. Whether his unconventional ways will succeed in the complex world of politics remains a matter of debate.

In a highly charged political atmosphere, seasoned politicians—as also Bangladesh's neighbours—are watching closely to see if this ngostyled academic can lead his country into a critical democratic transition.