Mirna Fahmy-Diplomatic Inside
Following the coup against its prime minister and even after gaining independence in 1971, Bangladesh has experienced political turmoil.
Recent events in Bangladesh have been marked by significant unrest and political turmoil, primarily driven by student protests against a controversial quota system for government jobs.
It all started when student protests erupted over the reinstatement of a 30% job quota for the descendants of independence war veterans, which many view as discriminatory. The protests have escalated into widespread violence, resulting in over 300 deaths, including both protesters and police officers, since they began in July 2024.
In response to the protests, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government imposed a curfew, deployed military forces, and enforced a communications blackout. The government has been criticised for its heavy-handed tactics, including the use of lethal force against demonstrators.
Repressing the roaring demonstrations by force didn’t put out the anger of many people, inciting the protestors to go berserk and attack the government buildings and properties. The military force didn’t withstand, and they as well returned their backs to their biggest supporter, the Prime Minister.
Amidst the chaos, PM Hasina has reportedly fled to India and is seeking political asylum, while the military has suggested her resignation. An interim government is being formed, with Muhammad Yunus, a prominent figure known for his microfinance work, being proposed as a potential interim leader.
Protesters continue to demand the complete abolition of the quota system, accountability for the violence against demonstrators, and the release of arrested protesters. Despite a Supreme Court ruling that reduced the quota from 30% to 5%, student leaders insist their protests will persist until their demands are met.
The political history of Bangladesh:
After India became independent from Britain in 1947, the state was divided into Hindus and Muslims. The Hindus have a state, which is India. As for the Muslims, they separated into a new state called “Pakistan” in the same year. Pakistan was made up of two parts: West Pakistan and East Pakistan. However, the two sides had animosity between them from upbringing, though they are Muslims, but the colour of the skin differs. West Pakistan had a monopoly on everything, which was power and wealth that were in the hands of the feudal bourgeois families allied with the army, which was the primary ruler. As for East Pakistan, it was of a “darker” skin, and therefore their social classification is lower. They are mostly the poor’s labour force and do not have political representation.
East Pakistan’s most prominent political leader, Mujibur Rahman, formed a party called the Awami League in East Pakistan, demanding its share of power. He entered the parliamentary elections in 1970 and won a majority, but the Pakistani president, General Yahya Khan, refused to acknowledge the results for many months and decided to punish the province of ‘East Pakistan’. It sent 200,000 army soldiers to suppress the people in 1971. Around 300 to 500 thousand people died at the hands of the Pakistani army in this horrific massacre.
India didn’t sit still and entered a massive battle against Pakistan because millions of residents of East Pakistan fled to it and settled specifically in the state of Assam. India crushed the Pakistani army and humiliated it in a massive way. It captured 80 thousand of its soldiers and released them only after President Yahya Khan signed a humiliating surrender document in front of an Indian corporal. Then, East Pakistan became independent, whereas there is a new republic under the leadership of Mujibur Rahman, the Republic of Bangladesh.
Life in Bangladesh didn’t settle at a peace point. The generals struggled for power in Bangladesh, and the founding father of Bangladesh and the liberation leader, Mujibur Rahman, was killed along with a massive murder that killed 27 members of his family in 1975, and only two members survived; one of them was Mujibur Rahman’s daughter, whose name was “Hasina.”
One of the conspirators to kill Mujibur Rahman was one of his friends, General Ziaur Rahman. Greedy enough, he turned against the new president and became the President of the Republic. Only 4 years later, he was assassinated. It was important that Ziaur Rahman reversed the foreign and internal policies of Bangladesh. Mujibur Rahman Abul Tahrir had hatred for Pakistan, owed India all the credit, and was keen on the secularism of the state from the first minute. As for his companion Ziaur Rahman, when he came to power, he turned against India. He favoured the Bengali Islamic parties loyal to Pakistan, and thus Bangladesh became two factions: a secular one loyal to India and an Islamic one close to Pakistan.
Who is Sheikh Hasina, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh?
The phenomenon of military coups ended in 1990 with the removal of General Hussain Ershad.
An elected democratic government was formed by Khaleda Zia, the widow of General Ziaur Rahman, which fell a few years later. In 1996, Sheikh Hasina, “Mujibur Rahman’s daughter,” rose to power and became the prime minister of Bangladesh till 2001. Henceforth, a struggle between two women who inherited privacy from their fathers erupted. Khaleda Zia, daughter of General Ziaur Rahman, who killed Mujibur Rahman, and the father of Sheikh Hasina. From 1991-2024, the two women ruled Bangladesh with the exception of 3 years.
The largest share went to Sheikh Hasina, while Khaleda Zia ruled for only two terms, which means that each one of them held power and issued a death sentence on the other’s supporters. There were even leaks of scandalous calls between them lasting an hour and a half of insults.
Horrific poverty and public uproar were bubbling the streets amid the two women’s conflicts. For example, in 2013, a factory called Rana Plaza collapsed on top of 1,300 workers, killing them instantly. The incident shed a light on the world and shed light on the crisis of the luxury clothing industry in Bangladesh for the benefit of Zara and other big brands. A piece is sold for tens of dollars while the Bangladeshi worker earns a few cents without any conditions of safety or protection.
Hindus in Bangladesh:
After the ouster of PM Hasina in August 2024, videos of Hindus getting killed and their houses robbed have set off a chain on X where the religion conflicts are on fire. “All eyes on Hindus in Bangladesh” were pinned all over the posts. Conservatives and right-wing supporters condemned these actions and what the Hindus are suffering—minor cleansing from the Muslim majority. The BBC, along with the AFP, conducted an investigation regarding this part and found out the videos shared don’t relate to the political chaos the country indulged in. In the same article, it has been stated by an AFP fact-checker that there have been attacks on Hindu-owned properties.
Many big agencies reported that violence against Hindus appears to have started just hours after Hasina resigned and fled the capital, Dhaka. “Refrain from all kinds of violence,” Nobel laureate for Peace Muhammad Yunus, who is to lead an interim government in Bangladesh, said. He urged the student protesters to protect all minority communities, including Hindu, Christian, and Buddhist, from being targeted.
Hindus constituted around 30% of the population in 1947, but their share has steadily declined to less than 9% in 2022 since the Partition of India in 1947, according to the Minority Rights Group. The report explained that targeted violence, executions, rape, and other human rights abuses against Hindus rose, especially during the 1971 war and in recent decades.
Since the 1990s, various radical Islamist organisations, such as Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and Ansarullah Bangla Team, have gained prominence. These groups have been involved in violent attacks against secular figures and minority communities, including Hindus, aiming to impose their interpretation of Islamic law. By that time, many Hindus started to flee to India for safety.