The interim government of Bangladesh has launched a major operation in response to a violent attack on activists belonging to the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement. The group had given a 24-hour ultimatum to track down the culprits responsible for assaulting their members during a reported incident at the home of an Awami League leader on the outskirts of Dhaka.
The operation, dubbed “Operation Devil Hunt,” was initiated by Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus’s government, which called in army troops to restore order in Gazipur, where the attack took place. The Home Ministry announced that the security clampdown would extend nationwide to ensure public safety, with details of the operation to be revealed the following day.
Reports and eyewitnesses confirmed that the activists were assaulted by local residents and Awami League supporters while attempting to prevent looting at the residence of ex-minister AKM Mozammel Haque. The student leaders maintained that they had received information about the plundering and had gone to intervene, but were met with violence by the attackers.
Despite the students’ claims of police inaction during the assault, Gazipur police stated that they had responded to the incident and rescued the injured activists. Fifteen of them were admitted to a local hospital, with some later transferred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for further treatment. Home Affairs Adviser Lt Gen (Retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury visited the hospital to assure the victims of justice and promised to apprehend the attackers.
In response to the violence that erupted across the country following an online address by deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the Student Movement and Jatiya Nagorik Committee staged protests in Gazipur. The groups demanded the cancellation of Awami League’s registration as a political party, the trial of Hasina and her associates, and the confiscation of their assets for their actions during the uprising that led to the regime change.
Former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) also called on the interim government to address the escalating mob culture and restore law and order to prevent the resurgence of fascist forces. The unrest in Bangladesh has reignited six months after the student-led uprising that ousted the Awami League from power after a 16-year reign.
The situation remains tense as authorities work to identify and apprehend those responsible for the recent violence, while political parties and civil society groups continue to push for accountability and justice in the aftermath of the turmoil.
