 "Bangladesh former President Abdul Hamid left the country last Thursday and moved to Thailand. File image/Reuters")
Turmoil continues to grip the Southeast Asian nation of Bangladesh. The interim government, led by Muhammad Yunus, has found itself at the receiving end of students’ ire after it was revealed that the country’s ex-president, Mohammad Abdul Hamid, who was under scrutiny for his alleged role in the violent crackdown on demonstrators during last year’s mass protests against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, fled the nation in the most dramatic manner.
Last Thursday (May 8), the former president made a hasty exit from the country, in scenes which could only be described as theatrical. Reports state that Hamid quietly fled the country in the dark of night, only wearing a lungi.
But what was the reason for the Bangladesh ex-president’s filmy exit from the country?
Who is Mohammad Abdul Hamid?
Until he fled from Bangladesh, Hamid had a long history in the country’s politics that dates back to 1959. He started his political career in 1969 by joining the Awami League and a year later was elected as a member of parliament from the Mymensingh-18 constituency.
Known for his simplicity and his witty speeches, Hamid also holds the honour of being the only president in the country’s history to complete two five-year terms in a row — from 2013 to 2023.
In the aftermath of former Bangladesh PM Hasina’s ouster last August, the 81-year-old former president was named an accused in a murder case filed at Kishoreganj Sadar police station. The case also implicates Sheikh Hasina, her sister Sheikh Rehana, her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, and daughter Saima Wazed Putul.
He’s also under investigation for actions taken against protesters during the student-led agitation in 2024. In fact, Hamid’s house was among those demolished by an angry mob during the Bulldozer Programme in February, when even the Dhanmondi 32 house (turned into a museum) of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was destroyed.
How did Hamid leave the country?
Amidst the political turmoil in Bangladesh, which has been heightened since Yunus banned Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League under an anti-terrorism law, Hamid left Bangladesh, boarding a Thai Airways flight early on Thursday from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
Accompanied by his younger son Riad Ahmed and his brother-in-law Naushad Khan, Hamid fled the country stating that he needed medical treatment. However, his political opponents say that he has fled to escape being tried in Bangladesh.
Airport officials confirmed that Hamid boarded Thai Airways flight TG 340 about 3:05 am on Thursday and landed at Bangkok about 6:15 am Thailand time. But what was most surprising of his exit was the fact that Hamid was wheelchair-bound and dressed in a lungi.
When asked why he was allowed to fly out, an airport official was quoted as telling Dhaka Post, “According to Articles 34 and 102 of the Constitution, no Bangladeshi citizen can be prevented from travelling unless there is a specific ban from the court. We have not received any instructions to ban him. There was no request or application from the police to detain or arrest him in any case.
What happened after Hamid’s exit?
Soon after Hamid’s hasty exit from the country, different quarters questioned how the former president was allowed to leave, with the Students Against Discrimination (SAD), the group that spearheaded the initial anti-reservation agitation, issuing a 24-hour ultimatum, demanding accountability for those who enabled Hamid’s exit.
Nahid Islam, a prominent organiser of last year’s protests and convener of the National Citizens Party, wrote on Facebook: “The illegal fascist government’s president has been allowed to flee before our eyes. Our trust in the authorities’ pledge to deliver justice is now in doubt.”
Additionally, political group Gana Adhikar Parishad gave the interim administration 48 hours to bring the ex-president back. Activists from the National Citizens Party rallied outside acting Prime Minister Muhammad Yunus’ residence, demanding the former ruling party be banned.
Following the outrage, the Yunus administration formed a high-level committee headed by Education Adviser Prof C R Abrar to investigate the case and submit a report within 15 days. Other members in the panel include Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan and Labour and Employment Adviser and retired Brigadier General M Sakhawat Hossain.
Mohammad Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, the home affairs adviser, said he would step down if he cannot hunt down those who collaborated and helped Hamid leave the country.
Moreover, three officials — an additional superintendent of Police from the airport immigration unit, a Special Branch officer and the investigating officer in the Kishoreganj Sadar case that names Hamid as a co-accused — have been suspended pending an inquiry.
And now, according to a report by Netra News, Bangladesh’s National Security Intelligence (NSI) and military spy agency Directorate-General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) issued clearances that enabled Hamid to fly to Bangkok.
Have other Awami League leaders escaped the country?
Hamid’s hasty departure from Bangladesh follows a pattern. After Hasina’s ouster last year, several Awami League leaders and members fled the nation. In early April, Bangladesh interim government’s Information Advisor Mahfuj Alam claimed that more than one lakh members of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League fled to India.
Among the many Awami League leaders who tried to flee Bangladesh was Hasina’s law minister, Anisul Huq, and private industry and investment adviser Salman F Rahman. Reports say that they tried to flee Dhaka by boat on August 13, disguised as common villagers. But private citizens recognised and detained them before handing them over to the police. The two were arrested in connection with the death of two students who had been shot dead during the protests.
With inputs from agencies