Meet Bangladesh army chief who announced Sheikh Hasina’s resignation
Dhaka, Aug 05 :
Thousands of protesters in Bangladesh on Monday looted and vandalised Sheikh Hasina’s official residence in the capital Dhaka, smashed a statue of her father Mujibur Rahman with hammers and set her party’s offices on fire as they celebrated her departure as Prime Minister. Hasina, 76, resigned amid mass protests against her government.
The protests, which started last month initially with a demand to end the quota system that reserved 30 per cent of government jobs for the families of veterans who fought in Bangladesh’s war of independence against Pakistan in 1971, later turned into anti-government demonstrations.
Jubilant crowds took to the streets across the country to celebrate their victory after Army Chief General Waqar-uz-Zaman announced her resignation.
Her resignation ended her
Bangladesh protesters
15 years in power. Thousands of protesters defied a military curfew and stormed her official residence. However, she was no at her residence.
Video footage showed protesters vandalising and looting Hasina’s official residence ‘Ganabhaban’ in the capital Dhaka. They were seen celebrating on the Ganabjhaban premises waving their hands in the air. Many of them were seen leaving with many belongings of the Ganabhaban.
Videos on social media showed protesters climbing a statue of Hasina’s father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, a 1971 Liberation War hero, in Dhaka and smashing it with hammers.
Her Awami League’s office in Dhanmondi and Dhaka was set on fire by the agitators who chanted anti-government slogans.
They also attacked and vandalised the residence of Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal in the capital. Smoke was also seen coming out of the house.
The Army Chief announced her resignation in a dramatic development amid massive protests against her government that claimed more than 100 lives in the last two days. The violence forced authorities to enforce a nationwide curfew for an indefinite period.
At least six people were killed in a fresh outbreak of violence on Monday.
The government in the morning ordered a complete internet shutdown as protestors asked the general public to join a “Long March to Dhaka”. However, a government agency later gave a verbal order to start broadband internet around 1:15 on Monday. The police and military were seen on roads as protesters gathered in the capital for Monday’s March.
The day began with an eerie calm, but it turned violent after supporters of the ruling Awami League descended on the streets to subdue anti-government protests who defied curfew to gather for the “Long March to Dhaka”.
At least 101 people, including 14 policemen, were killed in clashes on Sunday.
Just over a month after he became Bangladesh’s army chief, General Waker-Uz-Zaman has been thrust into the limelight, announcing the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina who fled the country on Monday. Bangladesh has been engulfed by protests and violence that began last month after student groups demanded scrapping of a controversial quota system in government jobs. That escalated into a campaign to seek the ouster of Hasina, who has been in power for 15 years and most recently swept to a fourth straight term in January. Nearly 250 people have been killed in the violence.
Zaman, 58, assumed the duties of army chief on June 23 for a period of three years – the normal tenure for the position.
Born in Dhaka in 1966, he is married to Sarahnaz Kamalika Zaman, the daughter of General Muhammad Mustafizur Rahman, who was army chief from 1997 to 2000.
Zaman holds a Masters degree in Defence Studies from the National University of Bangladesh and a Master of Arts in Defence Studies from King’s College, London, according to the Bangladesh Army website.
Prior to becoming the army chief, he served as the Chief of General Staff for little over six months – a role in which he oversaw, among other things, military operations and intelligence, Bangladesh’s role in UN peacekeeping operations, and budget.
In a career spanning three-and-a-half decades, he has also worked closely with Hasina, serving as the principal staff officer at the Armed Forces Division under the Prime Minister’s Office.
Zaman has also been associated with the modernization of the army, the army website said.
As protests rocked the country once again this month, Zaman called upon army personnel to ensure security of people’s lives, properties, and important state installations.
Have faith in the army. We will accept all your demands,” the Army chief said, after the Army and various political leaders and prominent people held a meeting with President Mohammed Shahabuddin, reported Dhaka Tribune.
He said: “The Army will not fire. Police won’t shoot either. We will make a decision by tonight. But it may take a couple of days to execute.”
Hasina’s forced exile followed a 45-minute ultimatum given to her by the Army chief, a day after clashes killed nearly 100 people across the country, said media reports.
On Monday, protesters stormed the PM’s official residence, Gono Bhaban, shouting slogans and waving flags, media reports said.
The PM, departed from her residence on Monday afternoon on a military helicopter and carried on her further journey on a military plane, with a stop-over in New Delhi, media reports said.
She was accompanied by her younger sister, Sheikh Rehana, as they left for a “safer place”, the report said.
Somoy News TV claimed Sheikh Hasina left the country after submitting her resignation to the country’s Army Chief.
Hasina, took office for her fourth straight five-year term as the country’s Prime Minister in January this year after her ruling Bangladesh Awami League (AL) party won a landslide victory in the parliamentary elections.
Over 300 people have died in the unrest, making this one of the deadliest periods of civil unrest in Bangladesh’s history, said media reports.
The quota unrest began in June 2024 when the High Court reinstated a 30 per cent quota for the descendants of freedom fighters from the 1971 war of independence, reversing a 2018 decision that had abolished such quotas.
