The Crossbill Team
Fresh unrest gripped Bangladesh on Friday (December 19) as protests linked to the death of youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi, spiralling into widespread violence that left media houses, cultural institutions and an Indian diplomatic mission under attack.
Amid the turmoil, a 25-year-old Hindu man, Dipu Chandra Das, was lynched by a mob in Mymensingh, further deepening concerns over law and order during the country’s fragile political transition.
Hadi, a central figure in the 2024 mass protests that led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, died on Thursday while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Singapore. His body was flown back to Dhaka on Friday afternoon, and the interim government announced that his funeral would be held on Saturday at the parliament premises.
As violence spread following news of his death, the interim administration strongly condemned the incidents and appealed for restraint.
“This is a critical moment in our nation’s history when we are making a historic democratic transition. We cannot and must not allow it to be derailed by those few who thrive on chaos and reject peace,” the government said in a statement, referring to the general election scheduled for February 12
It added that the elections and the accompanying referendum “are not merely political exercises” but a “solemn national commitment” that is “inseparable from the dream” for which Hadi “sacrificed his life”.
Indian diplomatic missions across Bangladesh were placed under heightened security amid strong anti-India sentiment expressed by sections of the protesters. Slogans such as “agents of India, beware” and “stop Indian aggression” were raised at demonstrations in Dhaka’s Shahbagh area—renamed ‘Hadi Square’ by some Islamist parties and Dhaka University Central Students’ Union leaders—as well as in Sylhet and Chattogram, according to The Dhaka Business Standard.
The army has reportedly been deployed to guard Indian missions, although sources in New Delhi indicated there is no plan at present to evacuate Indian diplomatic personnel.
Soon after Hadi’s death was announced on Thursday, groups of protesters stormed, vandalised and set fire to the offices of leading Bengali daily Prothom Alo and the English-language Daily Star. Nurul Kabir, president of the Bangladesh Editors’ Council, was assaulted outside the Daily Star’s Dhaka office when he arrived there after hearing of the attack, his newspaper New Age reported.
Early on Friday, protesters also damaged the premises of the renowned cultural organisation Chhayanaut in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi area, while an office of Hasina’s former ruling Awami League—now banned—in Rajshahi was reportedly demolished.
United News of Bangladesh reported that at least four people, including two police personnel, were injured in clashes between protesters and police outside the Indian assistant high commission in Chattogram.
Condemning the lynching in Mymensingh, the interim government said: “We wholeheartedly condemn lynching of a Hindu man in Mymensingh. There is no space for such violence in new Bangladesh. The perpetrators of this heinous crime will not be spared.”
Addressing journalists from Prothom Alo, The Daily Star and New Age—editors of the first two had earlier spoken to Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus over the phone—the government said: “We stand with you. We are deeply sorry for the terror and violence you have endured … Attacks on journalists are attacks on truth itself. We promise you full justice.”
In a separate statement, culture adviser Mustafa Sarwar Faruquee described the attacks on the media houses and Chhayanaut as “undoubtedly a conspiracy to sabotage the elections”.
“Today, we were supposed to talk about Shaheed [martyr] Osman Hadi. Today, we were supposed to be in mourning. Who has diverted the topic? Who attacked Prothom Alo, the Daily Star, Chhayanaut? Those who did it do not want a democratic transition in Bangladesh,” he was quoted as saying
Following the assaults, the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy suspended its programmes indefinitely, bdnews24.com reported. Prothom Alo and the Daily Star, both unable to publish their print editions on Friday, issued strong statements condemning the arson and vandalism that endangered their staff. “Our colleagues, trapped on the roof, feared for their lives as a mob vandalised one floor after another and set fire to the lower floors,” the Daily Star said, adding that thick smoke made it difficult for staffers to breathe.
Prothom Alo said its office was “gutted” and that “the assets and valuable documents stored there were reduced to ashes”.
While Prothom Alo noted that police failed to arrive despite repeated requests for security, the Daily Star said “with concern that a better coordinated response [by the authorities] would have meant less trauma for our trapped colleagues who spent several hours in grave uncertainty in a mortal fear”.
Both dailies said the attacks amounted to a broader assault on independent media and freedom of speech, a view echoed by the Editors’ Council and the Newspapers Owners’ Association in a joint statement.
Meanwhile, concerns grew in New Delhi after intelligence inputs suggested that premises linked to the Indian high commission had appeared on a list circulated online by certain groups identifying potential targets.
The list also included sites that were later attacked, such as the offices of the two newspapers and cultural organisations Chhayanaut and Udichi, as well as the Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre (IGCC). The IGCC’s original building in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi area had been vandalised and set ablaze during violence following Hasina’s ouster in August last year, after which it shifted to an alternative location.
Hadi, a key leader of the July–August 2024 uprising, served as spokesperson of the right-wing cultural group Inquilab Mancha, which has led a campaign to disband the Awami League. He had planned to contest the February general election as an independent candidate. Both he and Inquilab Mancha were outspoken critics of India, where Hasina continues to live in exile—a sensitive issue that has strained ties between New Delhi, the interim government and various political groups in Bangladesh.
Condoling Hadi’s death, Yunus had earlier described it as “an irreplaceable loss in the nation’s political and democratic landscape” and vowed strict action against those responsible.
“In this moment of grief, let us transform the ideals and sacrifices of Martyr Sharif Osman Hadi into strength. Let us hold firm to patience, ignore misinformation and rumours and refrain from any hasty decisions”, Yunus said, also calling for “patience, restraint, courage and foresight” so that “the enemies of change” do not succeed.
Amid the turmoil, a 25-year-old Hindu man, Dipu Chandra Das, was lynched by a mob in Mymensingh, further deepening concerns over law and order during the country’s fragile political transition.
Hadi, a central figure in the 2024 mass protests that led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, died on Thursday while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Singapore. His body was flown back to Dhaka on Friday afternoon, and the interim government announced that his funeral would be held on Saturday at the parliament premises.
As violence spread following news of his death, the interim administration strongly condemned the incidents and appealed for restraint.
“This is a critical moment in our nation’s history when we are making a historic democratic transition. We cannot and must not allow it to be derailed by those few who thrive on chaos and reject peace,” the government said in a statement, referring to the general election scheduled for February 12
It added that the elections and the accompanying referendum “are not merely political exercises” but a “solemn national commitment” that is “inseparable from the dream” for which Hadi “sacrificed his life”.
Indian diplomatic missions across Bangladesh were placed under heightened security amid strong anti-India sentiment expressed by sections of the protesters. Slogans such as “agents of India, beware” and “stop Indian aggression” were raised at demonstrations in Dhaka’s Shahbagh area—renamed ‘Hadi Square’ by some Islamist parties and Dhaka University Central Students’ Union leaders—as well as in Sylhet and Chattogram, according to The Dhaka Business Standard.
The army has reportedly been deployed to guard Indian missions, although sources in New Delhi indicated there is no plan at present to evacuate Indian diplomatic personnel.
Soon after Hadi’s death was announced on Thursday, groups of protesters stormed, vandalised and set fire to the offices of leading Bengali daily Prothom Alo and the English-language Daily Star. Nurul Kabir, president of the Bangladesh Editors’ Council, was assaulted outside the Daily Star’s Dhaka office when he arrived there after hearing of the attack, his newspaper New Age reported.
Early on Friday, protesters also damaged the premises of the renowned cultural organisation Chhayanaut in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi area, while an office of Hasina’s former ruling Awami League—now banned—in Rajshahi was reportedly demolished.
United News of Bangladesh reported that at least four people, including two police personnel, were injured in clashes between protesters and police outside the Indian assistant high commission in Chattogram.
Condemning the lynching in Mymensingh, the interim government said: “We wholeheartedly condemn lynching of a Hindu man in Mymensingh. There is no space for such violence in new Bangladesh. The perpetrators of this heinous crime will not be spared.”
Addressing journalists from Prothom Alo, The Daily Star and New Age—editors of the first two had earlier spoken to Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus over the phone—the government said: “We stand with you. We are deeply sorry for the terror and violence you have endured … Attacks on journalists are attacks on truth itself. We promise you full justice.”
In a separate statement, culture adviser Mustafa Sarwar Faruquee described the attacks on the media houses and Chhayanaut as “undoubtedly a conspiracy to sabotage the elections”.
“Today, we were supposed to talk about Shaheed [martyr] Osman Hadi. Today, we were supposed to be in mourning. Who has diverted the topic? Who attacked Prothom Alo, the Daily Star, Chhayanaut? Those who did it do not want a democratic transition in Bangladesh,” he was quoted as saying
Following the assaults, the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy suspended its programmes indefinitely, bdnews24.com reported. Prothom Alo and the Daily Star, both unable to publish their print editions on Friday, issued strong statements condemning the arson and vandalism that endangered their staff. “Our colleagues, trapped on the roof, feared for their lives as a mob vandalised one floor after another and set fire to the lower floors,” the Daily Star said, adding that thick smoke made it difficult for staffers to breathe.
Prothom Alo said its office was “gutted” and that “the assets and valuable documents stored there were reduced to ashes”.
While Prothom Alo noted that police failed to arrive despite repeated requests for security, the Daily Star said “with concern that a better coordinated response [by the authorities] would have meant less trauma for our trapped colleagues who spent several hours in grave uncertainty in a mortal fear”.
Both dailies said the attacks amounted to a broader assault on independent media and freedom of speech, a view echoed by the Editors’ Council and the Newspapers Owners’ Association in a joint statement.
Meanwhile, concerns grew in New Delhi after intelligence inputs suggested that premises linked to the Indian high commission had appeared on a list circulated online by certain groups identifying potential targets.
The list also included sites that were later attacked, such as the offices of the two newspapers and cultural organisations Chhayanaut and Udichi, as well as the Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre (IGCC). The IGCC’s original building in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi area had been vandalised and set ablaze during violence following Hasina’s ouster in August last year, after which it shifted to an alternative location.
Hadi, a key leader of the July–August 2024 uprising, served as spokesperson of the right-wing cultural group Inquilab Mancha, which has led a campaign to disband the Awami League. He had planned to contest the February general election as an independent candidate. Both he and Inquilab Mancha were outspoken critics of India, where Hasina continues to live in exile—a sensitive issue that has strained ties between New Delhi, the interim government and various political groups in Bangladesh.
Condoling Hadi’s death, Yunus had earlier described it as “an irreplaceable loss in the nation’s political and democratic landscape” and vowed strict action against those responsible.
“In this moment of grief, let us transform the ideals and sacrifices of Martyr Sharif Osman Hadi into strength. Let us hold firm to patience, ignore misinformation and rumours and refrain from any hasty decisions”, Yunus said, also calling for “patience, restraint, courage and foresight” so that “the enemies of change” do not succeed.
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