Hasina falls, lands in India: Celebration in Dhaka, tension on Bengal border as army is deployed

As thousands stormed her official residence in Dhaka, the 76-year-old Premier who prided herself in helming five democratically elected governments boarded a chopper and then a military plane to flee the country, much in the style of deposed dictators

Defaced, dumped: Against the backdrop of a .blistered mural of Sheikh Hasina, protesters celebrate her resignation as Prime Minister: AP/PTI picture

Devadeep Purohit, PTI,  06.08.24, DHAKA: The after-tremors of the Partition of 1947 haven’t ceased to convulse this subcontinent. Sheikh Hasina Wazed, longest-serving Prime Minister of the nation violently cleaved off Pakistan in 1971, quit on Monday and fled after weeks of student protests that claimed at least 400 lives and crystallised into a rebellion against her

with the armed forces refusing to defend her regime any more.

As thousands stormed her official residence in Dhaka, the 76-year-old Premier who prided herself in helming five democratically elected governments boarded a chopper and then a military plane to flee the country, much in the style of deposed dictators.

Sources said Hasina, who arrived in India in the evening, had sought asylum in the UK amid claims that she had called it a day as a politician.

Former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, Hasina’s eternal rival and BNP leader who was jailed (held in her home) for corruption, has been freed.

In an address to the nation around 3.15pm (2.45pm Indian time), the army chief, General Waker-Uz-Zaman, announced that Hasina had resigned and an interim government would run the country.

“An interim government will be formed…. I assure you that justice will be meted out to all who lost their loved ones. All the killings will be probed,” Zaman said.

The general had met representatives of political parties, excluding Hasina’s Awami League, before going live.

Zaman also announced the lifting of the curfew, except for six hours on Monday night, and the withdrawal of the armed forces — both in place since July 19 — bringing cheer across the country.

“The armed forces will maintain peace.... We take the responsibility for all,” he said.

Peace, however, remained elusive in a country in turmoil for weeks. Reports poured in about attacks on Awami League leaders and the minority Hindus and their places of worship.

Important monuments including the home of Founding Father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were vandalised or torched. Mujib’s statue, too, was damaged, marking a direct attack on the values of the freedom movement — a development possibly indicating the course Bangladesh politics might take from here.

Popular news channel Ekattor TV, a flag-bearer for a secular and liberal Bangladesh, had its office ransacked and was forced to shut operations.

Coordinators of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, a fledgling platform that had steered the agitation for quota reforms in government jobs, urged people to shun violence and protect the nation and its assets.

Mirza Fakrul Islam Alamgir, secretary-general of main Opposition party BNP, made a similar appeal.

Media reports, however, indicated continuing violence and vandalism till late night. Although the protesters’ main demand has been met, the death toll continued to rise. Bangladesh media reported at least 118 deaths, more than 70 of them in Dhaka alone.

“This is just the beginning. Just see the kind of bloodbath this country will witness in the next few days. People will regret the movement against Sheikh Hasina,” one of Hasina’s closest aides said from a hideout.

“Our life is under threat. They want to kill us all,” the aide said, adding that the apparent celebrations would be replaced with utter lawlessness and people would flee the country to save their lives.

The Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka was closed for six hours.

End game

The protesters had issued their one-point demand for the government’s resignation on August 3. But while shaken by the growing movement, the Awami League government was confident about quelling it with the support of the army, led by Zaman, Hasina’s relative and personal favourite.

The situation began changing from Sunday evening after the protesters advanced their “Long March to Dhaka” from Tuesday to Monday.

During a huddle with Hasina at her residence at 10.30pm on Sunday, the chiefs of the army, navy and air force assured her they would maintain order and not allow the march.

“But the PM was told this morning that the armed forces would not stop the marchers, and the jitters set in. The three chiefs went to Ganabhaban (Hasina’s residence) and advised her to step down. She wrote her resignation letter in their presence,” a source said.

Hasina then left for Bangabhaban, the official residence and workplace of President Mohammed Shahabuddin, and offered her resignation.

Several theories about what happened thereafter are floating around. A source said Hasina was advised against returning to Ganabhaban for her own security and offered a safe exit out of the country.

“She was taken to the Kurmitola airbase in Dhaka. She and her sister, Sheikh Rehana, boarded a C-130 transport aircraft of the Bangladesh air force and were flown to Ghaziabad in India,” the source said.

Street mood

Since a people’s movement in Sri Lanka ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2022, several Opposition leaders and opinion makers had predicted a similar revolt in Bangladesh.

Monday’s scenes in Dhaka did carry shades of those in Colombo two years earlier.

Reports of Hasina’s resignation spread fast and, with Internet and broadband restored around noon, people celebrated on the streets.

Citizens carrying the national flag were seen clicking selfies on the streets and claiming their country had finally achieved “true independence”.

Perhaps the most striking image was the public takeover of Ganabhaban. Thousands entered the building and later Hasina’s office and ran rampage, smashing and looting whatever they could, from computers and chairs to office stationery and crockery.

“We were confident that we would win this battle and the fascist forces would perish,” Asad Ronny, one of the coordinators of the student movement, told this correspondent.

“People raided Ganabhaban and did whatever they wanted. It was their way of expressing their disgust at the way Sheikh Hasina was clinging to power. People also took control of the Parliament building — their way of telling the world that our so-called electoral democracy was flawed in the absence of any Opposition.”

Ronny said that apart from these two institutions, no other government property was raided by the protesters.

Media reports of large-scale looting and arson across the country ran counter to his claim.

Interim govt

Attempts to form the next government, as promised by the army chief, have begun with all the stakeholders, including students and civil society members, involved.

The protest movement coordinators told a late-evening news conference that a road map to an interim government would be presented within 24 hours.

“Political and civil society representatives, our teachers, and the leadership of the students and the public will present the road map… and it will have to be implemented. The will of the main stakeholders of this student-public uprising will be reflected in it,” Asif Mahmud, one of the protest coordinators, said.

By afternoon, the names of several civil society members, teachers and technocrats began circulating as possible members of the interim government.

With the names coming from diverse backgrounds, from army officers to university teachers, reaching a consensus appeared a challenge. Added to this were the pulls and pressures from political parties like the BNP and the Jamaat, who have been out of power for more than 18 years.

“It’s a complex process, but we will manage to put together an interim government,” Ronny said.

While the protesters claimed they would form an inclusive government, the tentative names did not feature anyone from the Hindu, Christian or Buddhist communities, which together make up about 10 per cent of the population.

“We have come to know that two conditions are being talked about to be a part of the interim government — the person has to be free of any connection with the Awami League and India,” a source in the Indian security establishment said.

As the interim government will have to run the country before holding an election, it cannot afford to ignore India, on which Bangladesh depends for almost everything from curries to computer chips.

“The reports about the attacks on minorities are worrying. The interim government will have to be tough against any such acts,” the Indian source said. Reports said India would offer temporary shelter to some of the senior Awami League leaders who face threats to their lives.

Hasina future

A source in the British high commission in Delhi told The Telegraph that Hasina had sought political asylum in the UK.

“Her application for an asylum is being debated at the level of the government. It will ultimately be a political call,” the source said, adding she might have to spend a few days in India before moving elsewhere.

According to the source, the UK system doesn’t allow asylum to people who can relocate to a safe country near their own — in this instance, India — and Hasina can therefore take refuge in London only as a special case.

“Her case is being forwarded by India. The matter is also likely to come up during the scheduled call between the Indian defence minister and the UK defence secretary tomorrow (Tuesday),” the source said.

Strategic affairs experts were unsure whether the UK would allow Hasina asylum at a time when the country is witnessing race riots with South Asians as the main target.

Sources aware of Hasina’s next moves said she was considering options like Finland.

Hasina’s US-based son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, told BBC News that her political career was over. He said his mother was extremely disappointed at the developments despite having turned the Bangladesh economy around.

Path to peace

In a late-night statement, the army said all government and private organisations, factories, schools, colleges, madrasas and universities would open from Tuesday morning. The intent seemed to create an impression of normalcy.

However, incidents such as the torching of the Awami League’s central office and the homes of several senior party leaders like Salman F. Rahman suggest the rule of law has vanished.

A political announcement from BNP leader Alamgir added to the complications. He said Tareq Rahman, Khaleda’s son and acting chairperson of the party who has been in exile in London since 2008, would be brought back.

Though the BNP had backed the movement, it lacks much support among the protesters.

“There are chances of conflicts. Unless things are handled properly, things will worsen,” a student leader said, accepting the enormity of the challenges ahead.