Bangladesh has been plunged into fresh violent unrest in recent days following the assassination of Sharif Osman Hadi, a popular student leader and parliamentary candidate.
The 32-year-old, a staunch critic of neighboring India, was a key figure in the 2024 pro-democracy uprising that toppled former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Hadi was shot dead by masked men on December 12 as he left a mosque in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. He died on December 18 while receiving treatment at a hospital in Singapore.
The student leader planned to run in the parliamentary elections scheduled for February 12.
Violent protests
Hadi’s murder sparked violent protests in Dhaka. Protesters set fire to several buildings, including those of two major newspapers considered pro-India and a major cultural institution.
They also threw stones at the Indian High Commission in the port city of Chattogram. India has since suspended visa services in that city.
Police claimed to have identified the suspects in Hadi’s murder but have not yet arrested them. The perpetrator “could be inside or outside the country,” said Bangladesh Interior Minister Jahangir Alam Chowdhury. “If his exact location had been known, he would have been captured,” Chowdhury said.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned Hadi’s murder and called on authorities to conduct “a prompt, impartial, thorough and transparent investigation in accordance with international human rights standards.”
Lynchings of Hindus fuel security fears
In another incident, Dipu Chandra Das, a 25-year-old Hindu, was publicly lynched and burned to death in Bhaluka sub-division of Mymensingh district on December 18 after he was accused of blasphemy.
The killing heightened fears of insecurity among religious minorities in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country, since Hasina’s ouster.
Minority groups have accused the interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, of failing to ensure their security. The Yunus government rejects the accusation. Authorities reported that at least twelve suspects were arrested following Das’ murder.
Tensions between Bangladesh and India
The death further heightened tensions between Dhaka and New Delhi, where hundreds of people protested near the Bangladesh High Commission. Bangladesh has since suspended visa issuance in New Delhi, Siliguri and Agartala citing security concerns.
During Hasina’s rule, Bangladesh maintained close relations with India. New Delhi considered her a friend and both countries intensified bilateral cooperation on economic and security issues.
Hasina’s opponents accused her government of subservience to India. Since his fall, relations between the two countries have deteriorated.
Hasina, who sought refuge in India, was sentenced to death in absentia over her government’s suppression of the 2024 student uprising. She has denied the allegations made against her. India has not responded to the Bangladesh government’s repeated extradition requests.
According to Mohiuddin Ahmed, a Dhaka-based political historian, New Delhi’s support for Hasina and helping her stay in power for years led to anti-India discontent among Bangladeshis. “He has also helped his party rig elections in the past,” he added. The supreme leader returns from exile
Amid political instability and growing regional tensions, Tarique Rahman, one of Bangladesh’s leading politicians, returned to his country on Thursday after spending 17 years in exile in Britain. The politician is heir to the country’s ruling family and leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), widely seen as the favorite for the 2026 elections.
Rahman, who claims to have fled political persecution, has lived in London since 2008. He was involved in a grenade attack on a Hasina rally in 2004. He denied the allegations but was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment. Since Hasina’s fall, Rahman has been acquitted.
Rahman is expected to take over the party leadership from his ailing mother, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, 80. Zahed Ur Rahman, a Dhaka-based political analyst, welcomes Rahman’s return: “His return will bring a lot of changes. The government will start functioning properly. The perception of the elections will gain momentum. And his party will regain confidence.” “I think if the BNP does the right thing from the grassroots level the vote will be positive,” he added.
Historian Ahmed takes a similar view, stating that Rahman’s return would revitalize the BNP, which has been without an active and visible leader for years due to former Prime Minister Zia’s imprisonment and illness.
What do the polls say?
A poll conducted in December by the US-based International Republican Institute suggested the BNP could win a majority of seats in February.
About 33 percent of respondents said they would vote for the BNP. This was followed by Jamaat-e-Islami, the country’s largest Islamist party, with around 29 percent.
About 6 percent said they would vote for the newly formed National Citizens Party, made up of students who led last year’s uprising.
(ct)
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