Chanting slogans and waving placards, protesters accused authorities of failing to protect Osman Hadi, the convener of political platform Inquilab Mancha and a radical leader known for his fierce anti-India and anti–Sheikh Hasina rhetoric.
Massive protests broke out across Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka, with thousands gathering at Shahbag following the death of radical leader Sharif Osman Hadi, a polarising figure known for his strong anti-India rhetoric.
Chanting slogans and waving placards, protesters accused authorities of failing to protect Hadi, the convener of the political platform Inquilab Mancha and a key organiser of the July uprising. The demonstrations soon escalated, with a group vandalising the office of Daily Prothom Alo, the country’s largest newspaper, amid heightened outrage.
In Rajshahi, protesters set fire to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s residence and an Awami League office, causing extensive damage.
Local media reports that several people are stranded inside the building that houses the offices of Prothom Alo & Daily Star. Protesters first vandalised these offices and then set them ablaze. According to the Associated Press, soldiers and paramilitary border guards were deployed outside the two buildings but did not take action to disperse the protesters. Security officials tried to persuade them to leave peacefully as firefighters arrived outside The Daily Star building.
Protesters also gathered at the residence of India’s Deputy High Commissioner in Chattogram after news broke of the death of Sharif Osman bin Hadi and threw stones at the premises.
The demonstrators assembled outside the Khulshi premises around 11 pm on Thursday, shouting slogans over Hadi’s killing and raising chants against the Awami League and India.
Some protesters raised overtly anti-India and anti-Awami League slogans, including “Demolish Indian agression!” and “Catch and slaughter those who belong to the League (Awami League)”.
Bangladesh’s foreign office earlier confirmed that Hadi had died while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Singapore. He had been in critical condition since December 12, when he was shot in the head by unidentified assailants while campaigning in Dhaka’s Bijoynagar area. He was later airlifted to Singapore for advanced medical care but did not survive.
Amid the unrest, interim government chief Muhammad Yunus appealed for calm, urging citizens not to take the law into their own hands. He announced a day of national mourning on Friday, with special prayers to be held at mosques across the country, and vowed that those involved in what he called the “heinous murder” would not be spared.
“Hadi was the enemy of the defeated fascist terrorist forces. We shall again defeat those who tried to silence his voice and instil fear among the revolutionaries,” Yunus said, describing Sharif Osman Hadi as a martyr.
