A fresh wave of violence seeped through many cities in Bangladesh, resulting in over 32 deaths and hundreds of injuries as student protesters clashed with police and ruling party activists on Sunday. Police fired tear gas and used stun grenades to disperse tens of thousands of protesters calling for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign.
The government declared an indefinite nationwide curfew starting at 6 pm on Sunday, the first time it has taken such a step during the current protests that began last month.
Students in Bangladesh have been protesting for more than a month, demanding the abolition of a quota system for government jobs. The agitation, which has turned violent on multiple occasions, has so far killed at least 200 people across the country, with the capital, Dhaka, being the epicentre.
On Sunday, crowds of protesters, many wielding sticks, packed into Dhaka’s central Shahbagh Square, with street battles occurring in multiple locations as well as in other key cities, AFP reported. The protesters blocked major highways, clashed with police, and confronted groups supporting the ruling Awami League.
The protesters, which include students and some groups backed by main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, have called for ‘non-cooperation’, urging people not to pay taxes and utility bills and not to show up for work on Sunday, a working day in Bangladesh.
The protesters attacked offices and establishments that opened today, including the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, a major public hospital in Dhaka’s Shahbagh area. In Dhaka’s Uttara area, some crude bombs were detonated and gunshots were heard, witnesses said. They also torched several vehicles, according to news agency AP.
A policeman in Dhaka’s Munshiganj district, who spoke to the media, said that “the whole city has turned into a battleground”. The protest leaders had called upon the agitators to arm themselves with bamboo sticks, as the previous round of protests in July was largely crushed by the police.
According to Bangladesh media, the deaths were reported in 11 districts, including Bogura, Magura, Rangpur, and Sirajganj, where members of the Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party directly clashed.
The protests erupted last month over a quota system reserving 30 per cent of government jobs for families of Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence veterans. As demonstrations intensified, the Supreme Court reduced the quota to 5 per cent, with 3 per cent dedicated to veterans’ relatives. However, protests continued, with demonstrators demanding accountability for alleged excessive force used by the government to quell the unrest.
THEY ARE TERRORISTS: PM HASINA
However, PM Hasina and her party appear to be dismissing the pressure from the protesters. The government has blamed opposition parties and the now-banned right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami party and their student wings for instigating violence.
After a national security meeting, Hasina alleged, “Those who are protesting on the streets right now are not students, but terrorists who are out to destabilise the nation”. She appealed to the “countrymen to suppress these terrorists with a strong hand”.
The Awami League has announced that the Prime Minister has asked for all detained students to be released. She instructed top officials and the Home Minister that students who are innocent and against whom there are no allegations of serious crimes like murder and vandalism should also be released, the party said. The release of jailed protesters was one of the key demands of the agitators.
ARMY SAYS STANDS BY PEOPLE
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Army, in a statement that did not explicitly say whether they supported the protesters, stated that they stand by the people.
Army Chief Waker-uz-Zaman told officers that “the Bangladesh Army is a symbol of the people’s trust” and “it has always stood by the people and will continue to do so for the sake of the people and the state”.
At the same time, some former military officers have joined the student movement, and ex-Army Chief General Ikbal Karim Bhuiyan turned his Facebook profile picture red in a show of support.
Vikram Sharma is a globe-trotting journalist with a global perspective on international events. His articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing insights into the world’s most pressing challenges.
