Sheikh Hasina's father's home vandalised, set on fire by Bangladesh protesters

A mob vandalised and set fire to the residence of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding leader of Bangladesh and the father of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, in Dhaka on Wednesday.

According to The Dhaka Tribune, the incident took place just a day after Hasina delivered an online speech urging Awami League supporters to protest against the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus.

The protesters arrived in bulldozers and threatened to demolish the house in the Dhanmondi 32 area. Ultimately, they opted not to bring it down but broke the main gate, vandalised the property, and set it ablaze, added the report.

The attackers said the house was a symbol of “authoritarianism and fascism” and vowed to remove traces of what they termed as ‘Mujibism’ in the country.

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, reported The Dhaka Tribune.

The mob chanted slogans calling for the execution of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India on August 5 last year amid widespread anti-government protests.

In the lead-up to the planned protest by the Awami League, several of the party’s supporters and workers were arrested. The party intended to block Dhaka by shutting down the transport system across Bangladesh on Thursday, including major highways.

Hasina’s father, Bangladesh’s first president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, is widely viewed as an independence hero, but his relation to Hasina has turned him into a symbol of hate for many.

His home had already been badly damaged during the student-led revolution last year that ended Hasina’s 15 years of autocratic rule.

With inputs from agencies