Sheikh Hasina Gone: Why is India Worried? (Part 2)

 

The Razakar Remark and Intensified Public Anger

On 14th July, she held a press conference to keep the protesters calm. But she said something during the press conference that worsened the situation. In her speech, Sheikh Hasina said that if freedom fighters' grandchildren don't get a quota, will the 'Razakar's' grandchildren get it? When Sheikh Hasina used the word Razakar in her press conference, she completely changed the situation. Because this term is very offensive in Bangladesh. In 1971, during the fight for Bangladesh's freedom, the Razakars supported the Pakistan military against Bangladesh's freedom fighters. These people did many bad things. They killed civilians and r***d women. So when Sheikh Hasina used this word in her press conference, the protesters got even more angry. They chanted this slogan: 'Tui ke? Ami ke? Razakar, Razakar. ' 'Who are you? Who am I? Razakar, Razakar. ' The protesters didn't say that they were Razakars. But this was a way to show that Sheikh Hasina can't use such words for the protesters.

Escalation of Violence and Military Intervention

On 15th July, the situation worsened. Many protesters clashed at Dhaka University with a student wing. This student wing was of the Awami League. The next day, violence spread across the country. Whether it was Dhaka or Rangpur, student protesters were being killed everywhere. The situation was very bad. Rubber bullets and tear gas shells were being used against the students. It didn't look like the situation could get worse. But it did. The Bangladesh government involved the military in these protests. So against the student protesters, there was the government, police, military, and the student wing of the Awami League. And now blood started flowing like water. More than 15 students were killed on 18th July. There were tanks on the roads of Dhaka. Protesters chanted slogans to bring down the dictator. They set fire to several government buildings. Central Bank, Prime Minister's office, and police websites were hacked. The hacker group called themselves The Resistance. Sheikh Hasina's government shut down 4G services in the entire area. She thought that taking such drastic steps would reduce the number of protests. But it was the opposite. The protests got even worse.

Shoot-at-Sight Orders and Mounting Casualties

After this, the police issued a shoot-on-sight order. If you see a protester, kill them. 16 innocent students lost their lives, including a preschooler. A newspaper in Bangladesh, New Age, showed how a 15-year-old girl was killed while she was collecting clothes from the veranda. Dhaka became a war zone overnight. More than 100 students were killed between 16th and 20th July. And these were just official numbers. The unofficial numbers exceed this figure. Then on 21st July, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh passed its judgment on the High Court's order, which started the riot.

Supreme Court Verdict and Unmet Protestor Demands

Bangladesh's Supreme Court scrapped quota on government jobs. They cancelled the High Court's order. They said that 93% of jobs will be on merit. And 7% of jobs will be through a quota. 5% will be for veterans, i.e. children of freedom fighters. And 2% will be for ethnic minorities, transgenders, and disabled people. But the protesters were not happy with this verdict. They said, 'Why should we give a quota to the children of freedom fighters? ' They wanted the quota to be removed. This wasn't their only demand. They also asked the Sheikh Hasina government to apologize for their violence. And to punish those responsible for the student's murder. They also demanded to restore the internet connection, reopen universities and colleges, and release the protesters who had been jailed. The protestors had 9 demands. But even after a week, these demands were not fulfilled. Some people did get the internet connection but the majority of people remained under the internet curfew. The military was still on the streets and it was like a curfew all over the country. The police were still taking heavy action against the student protesters.

Government Suppression and Growing Public Resistance

Zulkarnain Seher, a reporter, said that on 23rd July, 36 unidentified bodies were buried without informing anyone. When the news was made public, the protesters realized that the government was not in the mood to negotiate. They were just pretending to negotiate to get some time. How can 36 unidentified bodies be buried? But now, some protesters had become smart. They were using online media to communicate. Like they created a Facebook group and used VPN to share updates. But the police started behaving badly. Journalist Mehedi Hasan Marof told us how a boy was arrested who was not even a student. When he was being arrested, his mother said that her son doesn't even study in the university. Why the police taking him? Now, the protesters were not just demanding a quota, but they were also demanding that Sheikh Hasina resign. Because she is responsible for violence against students. For example, Sheikh Hasina's portrait was removed from Dhaka's Jahangir University. The department said that they can't hang a murderer's portrait in the university.

Escalating Non-Cooperation and Further Violence

Sheikh Hasina underestimated the consequences of students' protests. And she was about to find out. After 4th August, a non-cooperation movement started. Students stopped attending classes. They demanded the resignation of Sheikh Hasina. And a long march started till Dhaka. They announced that no one should pay taxes and no one should give money to the government. The government replied with violence. On 4th August, there was so much violence that more than 100 lives were lost in one day. This meant that more than 300 students were killed. The protesters thought that instead of apologizing, the government was using violence. In response, many protesters attacked Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, a public hospital in Dhaka. They blocked many highways and surrounded many ruling party activists.

Communal Turn and the Final Protest

Unfortunately, we also witnessed a communal turn of these protests. Professor Nazmul showed that many people used this violence to attack Hindu minorities' homes and temples. It's not clear why the Hindus were being attacked. But a theory was given that many Hindu community members were traditionally supporters of Sheikh Hasina. That's why they were being attacked. But they forgot that many of them were actually with the student protesters. But now the situation was getting worse. On 5th August, a final protest was held. The protesters surrounded Sheikh Hasina's official residence. The situation was so bad that at 1.30 pm, her security team told her that the situation was dangerous and that she had no time to give a speech or to pack her bags. She had to leave quickly.

Sheikh Hasina Flees Amidst Army Refusal and Protester Entry

In her last few minutes, Sheikh Hasina asked the army to use force against the protesters. But the army refused. Sheikh Hasina had asked for this 3 days before, and the army refused. But Sheikh Hasina's response was that her party supporters would fight against the protesters, and they were given weapons. So, Sheikh Hasina's suspicions against the army turned out to be true. She realized that she had no limit to handle the protesters. But the Bangladeshi army had a limit. After this, Sheikh Hasina ran away with her sister in a helicopter. After this the Bangladeshi army removed the barricades outside Sheikh Hasina's house and the protesters entered her house. When you see such scenes, you'll think they're carbon copies of the protests of 2012. On the same day, the Bangladeshi army chief announced that he was creating an interim government. But the situation was volatile. Sheikh Hasina was brought to Agartala through a military helicopter. After this, she and reached the airbase in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, where she spent her night in New Delhi. It's not clear how long she will stay in Delhi, because reportedly, she has applied for political asylum in the United Kingdom.

India's Concerns and Regional Instability

But the situation is so serious for India, you can guess it from the fact that the meeting of the top security committee of our government, which includes many ministers, was held. In addition, External Minister Jai Shankar also led an all-party meeting where many opposition leaders were present. This is a big shock for the Indian government for two reasons. First, whether you look at the left or the right, there has been political instability everywhere in recent years. Whether it's Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Myanmar, or Bangladesh. In such an uncertain global environment, when your neighbor is in a very unstable area, this is not good news for any country. Second, Sheikh Hasina's behavior was pro-India. She worked closely with the Indian government to stop anti-India terrorist groups. In the past, when Bangladesh was being ruled by the Bangladesh National Party, or the army, India's relations with Bangladesh were not so good because of these terrorist groups. Now some people say that India doesn't need to be so scared. Like journalist Zia Hussain says that many conservative parties, like Jamaat-e-Islami, are not so popular among the people of Bangladesh. And the Bangladesh National Party won't be so popular because there are many freedom fighters in their own party, who were in support of this quota. Now hopefully this is true.

The Uncertain Future of Bangladesh

Many protesters have demanded that whatever new government is formed, it should be a secular government. And that depends on who will have the power. The protesters, the conservative parties, or the military. The student protesters of Bangladesh have taught us that whenever any government uses violence against the protestors, what can be the result of that? Unfortunately, we have recently seen a dark truth about such protests. Governments fall, but the political system doesn't change. One dictator is removed, and a new dictator comes. So those people who say that there is a pro-democracy revolution in Bangladesh, need to think twice. Whether there is a revolution or not, depends on who will sit on the chair next. And India should hope that after Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Myanmar, the political instability in Bangladesh doesn't last long."

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