Bangladesh in Chaos after Prime Minister’s resignation, meanwhile violence against minorities intensifies.
On the afternoon of Monday 5th of August Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned under the army’s pressure and fled the country amidst the massive protest. Army Chief Wakwr-Uz-Zaman took power and vowed to place an interim caretaker government for governance. This put the country into uncertainty and chaos as protesters stormed the parliament and wreaked havoc on the institution. Along with civil unrest targeted attacks on Hindu minorities in the country intensified just hours after the news became public.
Starting from Dhaka University, the student protest on the issue of the Freedom Fighter Quota became the largest civil disobedience movement toppling the government that founded the nation of Bangladesh. What started as a call for reform evolved into a turning point in the region’s history – which was once a part of India, then became East Pakistan and finally.. Bangladesh.
Freedom Fighter Quota and the policies around it, that sparked the Protest
After the 1971 war, which gave freedom to West Pakistan and formed the country Bangladesh, the freedom fighters of the war were awarded a 30% reservation on all government jobs. Initially, the policy was only for the freedom fighters, but in a 1977 special ordinance, this was corrected for their offspring. Then in 2010 in another policy change the grandchildren of the freedom fighters were included in the quota policy. Apart from that there is a 10% reservation for women, 10% for backward districts, 5% for ethnic minorities and 1% for ethnic minorities. Adding all, there is a 56% reservation in all the government opportunities and a large portion of it is reserved for the offspring of the freedom fighters.
However, after four decades this policy had become deeply flawed. Students and youth are very resentful of the policy and started demanding reforms in this issue. In 2012-13 there began a national movement against this quota system. In October 2018 after a nationwide protest from 400,000 students and violent clashes between pro and anti-quota fractions, the government scrapped the quota system completely for first and second-class jobs.
But the issue came to the forefront again after 7 families of freedom fighters filed a petition in the High Court against the removal of the quota system. On 1st of July of 2024, the High Court ruled in their favour and reinstated the system prior to 2018. This again sparked a series of protests by the students starting from Dhaka University.
The Protests, the Amalgamation of other factors in it and the ultimate submission of Sheikh Hasina
The protest that started after the High Court’s verdict spread nationwide within days. The ruling party Awami Leauge’s student wing worked to suppress the protests meanwhile, the opposition and its student wing heavily supported the anti-quota protests. As an aftermath of the protest two metro stations were burned. The Bangladesh Traffic Corporation’s four-story office was burned along with several police stations and post offices.
After about 100 fatalities, both death and injury included and a massive blockade of schools and colleges, the Attorney general of the country approached the Supreme Court regarding the issue. The highest court then scrapped the order by the high court on the 16th of July and promised a permanent solution in favour of the students within four weeks.
But by then the protests had evolved into a nationwide movement with the addition of several other controversial factors that ultimately forced the ruling party to crumble under it.
Addition of Non-Student Actors in the protests: When the protests accelerated in the country several other non-student actors also infiltrated the movements. The carders of BNP or Bangladesh National Party (the political opponent of the Awami League) and the Jamat E Islam (pro-Pakistani Islamic radical group) also started acting alongside the students. During the negotiations, students emphasised that the students’ protesters were peaceful and the destruction & violence was being caused by the non-student actors.
In a rampage, the protesters turned militants freed 860 inmates from jails, including some who were convicted of the charges of radicalisation, terrorism and heinous crimes. Targeted looting and thrashing of both businesses and individuals are a common theme throughout the country.
Handling of the protests by the government: The Hasina government took a harsh approach when it came to handling the protests.Armed forces took strict action in dismantling the gathering, which gathered both domestic and international scrutiny. In an address, the PM referred to the protesters as the Rajakar which is a derogatory term in the country and refers to the paramilitary group that enabled Pakistani troops of rape and genocide during the 1971 liberation war. This caused a massive uproar among the students and the administration was accused of diverting the real issue and trying to undermine the movement through labelling them Rajakar.
The protest worsened after 15th July and between 15th and 20th, 100 deaths casualties by the hands of administrators were reported. The administration also imposed a night curfew with a shoot at site order against the protesters on 20th. Official figures state 300 students’ death but the actual figure could reach up to 1000. News of Unwarranted arrests and mass unregistered burials stroked fire within the already agitated citizens.
Apart from that the citizens were angry with the government due to several other issues. The declining post-COVID economy, unemployment, corruption and alleged electoral mismanagement were also some factors that compelled people to take to the streets.
Possible Foreign Interference: Several South Asia experts suspect possible foreign interference in this whole episode. Symptoms of classic Western-promoted regime-change operation can be seen throughout the whole period of uproar. In early November last year, Hasina accused the US of interfering in the elections in the country. Allegations were drawn against “global patrons” of Jamat E Islam for supporting and funding radical Islamic ideology in the country.
The last straw of the Hasina administration came when the Army withdrew its support from the government. On the afternoon of 5th August, the PM was asked to resign by the army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman within 45 minutes. Moments after resigning Sheik Hasina asked Indian PM for safe passage to London through India and fled the country as soon as possible. As of now the ousted PM is in Delhi and will leave for London after several days. Members of the Awami Leauge party are getting lynched and hanged in public from highway railings, poles and cranes. The founding father Sheik Mujibur Rahman’s statue was beheaded by mobs as seen in a devastating video from Dhaka.
The ignored victims: Minorities especially Bangladeshi Hindus
With Hasina out of power, several radical factions are beginning to exploit the Hindu minorities of Bangladesh. The Hindu population, accounting for up to 13.1 million, are living in constant fear of repetition of the atrocities of 1971. Accounts of targeted lynching and killing of Hindu individuals, targeted thrashing and burning of Hindu businesses surfaced as soon as the news of regime change became public. According to ‘The Daily Star’- a Bangladeshi news organisation, Hindu houses, businesses and places of worship were attacked across 27 states in the country. Mobs gathering outside Hindu villages round up the villagers and burn the houses of Hindu families. Visuals of women and children crying and blocking the front door of houses as the mobs push to enter the home send chills down the spine of the viewer.
- Multiple Hindu houses were set ablaze in Hatibandha, Panchagarh, Dinajpur, Gunjapari, Khansama, Ruspa, Pakigachha, Gouranandi, Kishoreganj and many more districts and regions.
- Several Hindu individuals were lynched and beaten by mobs after getting dragged out of their houses. Hindu Awami League leader Haradhan Roy and his nephew were reportedly lynched by a mob. A grab of a telegram channel that has ever since gone viral, claims “13 Hindu homes and 3 temples were set on fire”.
- ISKON Temple in Meherpur was vandalised and thrashed yesterday. The three devotes living there however managed to escape and survive. Kajol Debnath, leader of the Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, told a news agency that four more temples were vandalised and burned in the last 24 hours.
As of now the Hindu minority of Bangladesh is on high alert and surviving under fear. The army has issued a helpline for the Hindus of Bangladesh to report any instances of communal or targeted violence. Despite that, the fear is not yet lifted.
Apart from the country, this event will also have a lasting impact on the region as a whole. Once revered for its growth story the country is now added to the list of another crisis-laden state in the South Asian region. It also again opened the debate of Western interference in Asia and the consequences the region faces. India being the only country with stability in both civil and economic aspects is now surrounded by another possible hostile neighbour. The impact of this is not yet fully gauged.
Bangladesh now stands at the precipice of a crucial time, where the country and its population watch in real-time as their history is being written. Some are calling this the second liberation of Bangladesh and some are calling it the rise of Anarchy. It is yet to be seen what stands true in the test of time.