4 deaths, clashes with Sheikh Hasina supporters: What led to a 22-hour curfew in this Bangladesh city

Indian Express

3 days ago

Military, paramilitary and riot police were deployed across Gopalganj in Dhaka Division on Thursday to enforce a strict 22-hour curfew after clashes during a National Citizen Party (NCP) rally left four people dead. Fourteen people have been detained so far.
Troops in battle gear, some hoisting red flags, patrolled the streets in armoured vehicles across Gopalganj — the hometown of Bangladesh's founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman — as businesses shut down, transport was halted, and residents were ordered to remain indoors. The town is 160 km southwest of Dhaka.
'A tense calm has gripped Gopalganj,' a local journalist told media from the ground, PTI reported.
According to police, the violence erupted on Wednesday ahead of a student-led NCP march. Hundreds of NCP supporters clashed with police and rival groups, including backers of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Rahman's daughter.
'The joint forces handed over the 14 individuals to us,' said Abdullah Al Mamun, inspector (investigation) of Gopalganj Sadar Police Station, the PTI report said. 'Filing of cases is underway.'
Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus' office said a curfew was in force from 8 pm Wednesday, vowing that 'the perpetrators of the attack on the NCP would not go unpunished.'
The NCP was formed as an offshoot of Students Against Discrimination (SAD), the group that spearheaded last year's mass protests, culminating in the fall of Hasina's 16-year Awami League government on August 5, last year.
A government-appointed inquiry committee was also formed overnight to probe the Gopalganj violence. It will be led by Home Ministry's Senior Secretary Nasimul Ghani, with two additional secretaries from the Law and Public Administration ministries.
Hasina's banned Awami League party issued multiple statements on X condemning the violence and holding the interim government responsible for the deaths and injuries.
'We urge the world to take note of this blatant use of security apparatus,' one Awami statement said, adding that it had used mob violence against 'dissenters.'
In a Facebook post, NCP convenor Nahid Islam wrote: 'We will liberate Gopalganj and entire Bangladesh from Mujibust terrorism and fascism.' He alleged that 'Mujibist terrorists had carried out a planned armed attack with a deliberate attempt to kill us,' and warned that 'they should keep in mind Awami League is not a political party, rather a terrorist organisation.'
He further claimed: 'After so many killings by Awami League in the peoples' uprising, many wanted its return as a refined Awami League after August 5.'
Islam also accused authorities of failing to arrest key Awami League and Chhatra League members in large numbers, adding that those arrested were either bailed or evading police custody.
Eyewitnesses said the clashes began when protesters, armed with bamboo sticks and bricks, vandalised police vehicles and that of the local administrative chief. Security forces, including the army and Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB), responded with gunfire.
Despite the violence, the NCP went ahead with its rally on a damaged stage and broken sound system. Convenor Nahid Islam chaired the event, declaring that if law enforcement failed to deliver justice, 'we will ensure it ourselves.'
Local media and residents reported that not just Awami League supporters but also common citizens — and even workers from Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party — joined hands to resist the NCP's rally.
In February this year, thousands of protesters torched the house of Mujibur Rahman in Dhaka's Dhanmondi 32 — now a memorial.
Sheikh Hasina, 77, has been living in India since August 5, 2024, after fleeing Bangladesh in the wake of the student-led uprising that brought down her government.
(With inputs PTI)