In the wake of Bangladesh’s recent political turmoil, former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) held a sit-in across the country today August 15, demanding arrest and trial of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Leaders and activists of BNP called for accountability from Hasina and her associates for the violence that gripped the nation during the anti-quota movement protests, reports PTI.
Sheikh Hasina, who resigned on August 5 following massive protests, left behind a country in disarray. An interim government, led by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus, was sworn in on August 8 to stabilise the situation.
However, the scars of the recent unrest are far from healed.
The violence, which escalated after Hasina’s resignation, has claimed over 230 lives, with the death toll during the three-week period of chaos reaching 560. The interim government has launched an investigation into Hasina and nine others, accusing them of genocide and crimes against humanity between July 15 and August 5, during a mass movement led by students.
BNP activists gathered at key locations in Dhaka, including the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque, the Awami League offices, and the Central Shaheed Minar. The demands are justice for the lives lost and the arrest of Hasina, reports PTI.
At Baitul Mukarram, BNP Dhaka City South Convenor Rafiqul Islam Majnu led the charge. "We have one demand — the arrest and trial of fascist autocrat Sheikh Hasina and her accomplices. They have conducted a brutal genocide in Bangladesh," Majnu declared.
The protest also saw hundreds of BNP activists, including those from the Savar Jubo Dal and the Chhatra Dal, the BNP’s student wing, rallying across the city.
This morning, on the 49th anniversary of the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country's founder and Hasina’s father, tensions ran high near his residence in Dhanmondi-32. Students and citizens were seen obstructing and attacking people who had come to pay their respects. Eyewitnesses reported that at least five people were beaten by the crowd, reports PTI.
