Six days after being shot during an election campaign, Sharif Osman Hadi, a key leader of the mass movement against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, died at a hospital in Singapore on Thursday. His death sparked widespread protests in the capital, which later escalated into attacks on major newspaper offices.
Hadi was contesting the February 12 general election from the Dhaka-8 constituency as an independent candidate.
Newspaper offices targeted
The protests later turned violent, with groups of demonstrators attacking media houses in the capital. The office of leading Bengali daily Prothom Alo in Karwan Bazar, near Shahbagh, was vandalised late Thursday night.
According to reports, protesters damaged several floors of the building, trapping journalists and staff inside, and set fire to the front portion of the office. An eyewitness said hundreds of protesters arrived around 11 pm and surrounded the premises.
The motive behind the attack remains unclear, particularly as Prothom Alo is widely regarded as having tacitly supported Yunus and the interim government. A separate group of protesters also attacked the office building of The Daily Star, Bangladesh’s largest English-language daily.
Yunus announces death, promises justice
In a televised address to the nation on Thursday night, Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus announced Hadi’s death and vowed swift action against those responsible.
“Today, I come before you with extremely heartbreaking news. Sharif Osman Hadi, the fearless frontline fighter of the July uprising and spokesperson of the Inqilab Manch, is no longer with us,” Yunus said.
He assured that the state would show zero tolerance towards the perpetrators, urging citizens to remain patient and allow law enforcement agencies to carry out a professional investigation. “The state is fully committed to establishing the rule of law,” he said.
Yunus described Hadi’s death as an irreparable loss to Bangladesh’s political and democratic landscape and extended condolences to his family. He also announced that the government would take responsibility for Hadi’s wife and only child, noting his role in the movement that led to the fall of the Hasina government on August 5, 2024.
One-day national mourning declared
The Chief Advisor declared a one-day national mourning on Saturday. The national flag will be flown at half-mast at all government, semi-government and autonomous offices, educational institutions, public and private buildings, and Bangladesh missions abroad. Special prayers will be offered in mosques across the country after Friday prayers.
“No one can stop the democratic progress of this country through threats, terrorist acts or bloodshed,” Yunus said, calling for unity and restraint.
Protests erupt at Shahbagh
Soon after the announcement of Hadi’s death, hundreds of students and citizens gathered at Shahbagh intersection near the Dhaka University campus, chanting slogans in his name. The student group Jatiya Chhatra Shakti (National Student Power) organised a mourning procession from the university campus to Shahbagh.
During the protest, demonstrators burned an effigy of the Home Affairs Advisor, demanding his resignation for failing to arrest those behind the killing.
Political reactions and investigation
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat-e-Islami expressed condolences over Hadi’s death. Earlier, the Home Affairs Advisor had announced a reward of Tk 50 lakh for information leading to the arrest of the attackers.
Police have arrested the parents, wife and a female friend of the suspected assailant, identified as Faisal Karim Masud.
Background to the killing
Hadi was shot by masked gunmen on Friday while campaigning in the Bijoynagar area of central Dhaka. As his condition was described as critical, the interim government arranged for his transfer to Singapore by air ambulance on Monday for advanced treatment. He died on Thursday, hours after his family consented to surgery in a last attempt to save his life.
Following his death, the Inqilab Manch threatened to stage a sit-in protest at Shahbagh until the attackers are arrested. The group also warned that if the perpetrators flee to India, they must be apprehended and brought back through negotiations with the Indian government.