‘History can’t be wiped out’: Hasina hits back at Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami after attack on her father’s home

Bangladesh’s deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina has condemned violence that erupted on Wednesday (February 5) in Dhaka, which saw extremists target her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s residence.

The Awami League leader stressed that a “structure can be erased, but history cannot be wiped out”. She made these remarks in a virtual speech made from India, where Hasina has been residing since her ouster in August last year.

“Why fear a house? I seek justice from the people of Bangladesh. Have I not done anything for my country? Then why such disrespect? The only memory that both my sister and I have clung to is being wiped out. A structure can be erased, but history cannot be wiped out," Sheikh Hasina said.

Site targeted by Jamaat-e-Islami activists

Notably, it is the second time since the fall of Hasina’s government that Dhanmondi-32, now made a museum, has faced wrath of Bangladeshi extremists.

According to media reports, the site, which holds great historical significance in the context to the South Asian country’s independence, was targeted by activists of Jamaat-e-Islami, Bangladesh’s largest Islamist political party.

“They must also remember that history takes its revenge,” Hasina warned in her address.

Jamaat-e-Islami had been outlawed by the Hasina regime under an antiterrorism law; however, the ban was lifted by the interim government of Muhammad Yunus.

In 2013, Bangladesh judges concluded that the Islamist party was acting in violation of the secular constitution of the Muslim-majority nation of 170 million people.

Mob violence occurred after Hasina’s address

Bangladeshi media reported that Wednesday’s flare-up came a day after Hasina addressed her party workers virtually.

The extremists said the site represented “authoritarianism and fascism” and said they wanted to remove traces of what they termed as ‘Mujibism’ in the country.

The Dhaka Tribune reported that several protesters climbed to the second floor of the house and used hammers, crowbars and wooden planks to destroy Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s portrait and others on the property.

Mujibur Rahman is widely viewed as an independence hero in the South Asian nation; however, opposition parties have tried portraying him as a symbol of hate over the past months.

(With inputs from agencies)