Two new murder cases were filed on Monday against Bangladesh’s ousted prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, and former ministers of her Cabinet, related to the deaths of two individuals during the quota reform protests that ultimately led to her removal from office.
These latest charges add to the growing number of legal cases against the 76-year-old former premier, who resigned and fled to India on August 5 following massive student protests against a controversial government job quota system.
The cases pertain to the murders of Liton Hasan Lalu, also known as Hasan, in Mirpur, Dhaka, and Tarik Hossain in the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area during the violent unrest that culminated in Hasina’s ouster, according to reports from the state-run BSS news agency.
Liton’s brother filed a case against 148 individuals, including Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, former inspector general of police Abdullah Al Mamun, and others at the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate.
Case documents indicate that Liton participated in a peaceful march in Mirpur on August 4 as part of the student movement. Around 2 pm, members of Hasina’s Awami League party allegedly began firing indiscriminately at the procession, resulting in Hasan’s fatal injuries.
According to the report, Tarik was shot by unidentified assailants in front of the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station on August 5 and later died of his injuries on August 9.
These new charges bring the total number of cases filed against Hasina since her ouster to fifteen.
Additionally, on Sunday night, another murder case was filed by Shahnaz Begum, the widow of Md Milon, who was shot dead on July 21 while returning home from a local fish market, according to the Dhaka Tribune.
Sixty-two people, including Hasina, former road transport and bridges minister Quader, former lawmaker Shamim Osman, and former home minister Kamal, were named as defendants in this case.
The report alleges that leaders and activists of the Hasina-led Awami League and its affiliated groups, armed with firearms and sticks, obstructed traffic on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway to disrupt the student movement. It further claims that Hasina, Quader, and Kamal ordered the shootings and attacks on students and the public.
Milon, who was returning home from a local fish market, was shot in the chest and collapsed on the road. He was taken to Pro-Active Medical College and Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to the report.
The violence that erupted across the country following the collapse of the Hasina-led government has claimed the lives of over 230 people, raising the death toll to more than 600 since the student protests began in mid-July.
Following the fall of the Hasina government, an interim administration was established, with 84-year-old Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus appointed as its Chief Adviser.
(With agency input)
First Published: Aug 19 2024 | 5:52 PM IST
