The brother of slain Bangladeshi student leader Sharif Osman Hadi has issued a sharp warning to the country’s Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, alleging that those in power were behind the killing and cautioning them against a “Sheikh Hasina-like fate” if justice is delayed.
Sharif Osman Hadi, the renowned student activist and organizer of Inqilab Moncho who had taken part in protests, was shot at the beginning of this month when coming out of a mosque in Dhaka. He died afterwards in a hospital in Singapore due to the severity of his wounds. His passing away has caused a backlash of unrest and strained the political situation even more in the run-up to the national elections in Bangladesh that are planned for next year.
Addressing a “Shahidi Shopoth” programme organised by Inqilab Moncho in front of the National Museum at Shahbagh, Hadi’s brother Omar Hadi accused a section within the interim government of orchestrating the murder to derail the electoral process. “It is you who had Osman Hadi killed, and now you are trying to sabotage the election by turning this into a political issue,” Omar Hadi was quoted as saying by The Daily Star.
Sharif Osman Hadi, 32, was a candidate for the February 12 general election and had emerged as one of the leading voices of the 2024 student-led uprising that ultimately forced then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and flee the country. Omar Hadi alleged that his brother was targeted because he refused to submit to pressure from state agencies or “foreign masters.”
Issuing a stern warning to the interim leadership, Omar Hadi demanded swift action against those responsible for the killing. “Ensure a speedy trial of the killers so that the election environment is not disturbed. So far, the government has failed to show any visible progress. If justice is not delivered for Osman Hadi, you too will be compelled to flee Bangladesh one day,” he said.
The murder has ignited enormous demonstrations all over the nation. After the news of Hadi’s assassination was given on December 18, hundreds of people went out on the streets, and several cases of damage were reported, among them the attacks on media offices. In the midst of the turbulence, a mob murdered a Hindu laborer, Dipu Chandra Das, on the Dhaka–Mymensingh road, which caused an even larger outcry and panic over the law and order situation.
While unrest continues to increase in Bangladesh, the case of the murdered Sharif Osman Hadi has been a catalyst, throwing the issues of political violence, accountability, and the shaky situation of the interim government before the decisive elections into sharp relief.
