Crackdown on Critics: 150 Cases Filed Against Opposition in Just 45 Days Under Sheikh Hasina’s Rule
Sheikh Hasina and Awami League Leaders Face Multiple Murder Charges
Following her resignation on August 5, Sheikh Hasina, the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, has been accused of multiple murders, disappearances, and massacres. The allegations have been piling up over the last 15 years, with 150 cases filed against her in the Dhaka court in the past month and a half. Out of these, 140 are murder cases, while the remaining 10 include charges of attempted murder, threats, assault, and battery.
Apart from Sheikh Hasina, other prominent Awami League leaders, including Obaidul Quader, Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, Junaid Ahmed Palak, Muhammad Ali Arafat, Salman F Rahman, Abdullah, Haroon Or Rashid, and Habibur Rahman, have also been accused in these cases. Former ministers, state ministers, and members of parliament, as well as local leaders and activists, are also implicated.
Multiple Murder Cases Filed in Dhaka Courts
The first murder case against Sheikh Hasina was filed on August 13 in a Dhaka court. Seven people, including Sheikh Hasina and Obaidul Quader, were accused of killing Abu Sayeed, a grocer, during the quota drive at Mohammadpur police station on July 19. A total of 150 cases have been filed against Sheikh Hasina in 31 police stations across Dhaka.
The police stations where cases have been filed include Jatrabari (42), Mirpur (24), Uttara-Purba (14), Savar (10), Badda (9), Mohammadpur (5), Kadmatli (5), Rampura (4), Tejgaon (3), Newmarket (3), Adabar (3), Sutrapur (3), Khilgaon (3), and Hatirjheel (3), among others.
Additional Murder Cases Filed Against Sheikh Hasina
Six more murder cases have been filed against Sheikh Hasina as the main accused. These cases were heard in the court of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) in Dhaka on September 19.
Sheikh Azizur Rahman filed a murder case against 144 people, including Sheikh Hasina, in the Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate’s court. The court directed the concerned police station to receive the complaint as a statement.
A case of murder has been registered against 47 people, including Sheikh Hasina, Obaidul Quader, and Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, in the Dhaka Shaheen Raza Metropolitan Magistrate Court. The court ordered the Jatrabari police to accept the complaint as a statement.
Similar cases have been filed in the courts of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrates Arifur Rahman, Saifuddin Hossain, Belal Hossain, and Arfatul Rakib, with the courts directing the respective police stations to accept the complaints as statements.
