Protesters set fire to ousted PM Hasina's father's home in Bangladesh
1. Rally organised alongside a broader call, dubbed "Bulldozer Procession", to disrupt Hasina's online address
Thousands of protesters set fire to the former residence of Bangladesh's founding leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, on Wednesday as his daughter, ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, delivered a speech on social media urging her supporters to resist the interim government.
A crowd of several thousand demonstrators—some wielding sticks, hammers, and other tools—gathered around the site, using an excavator and a crane to tear down the historic house.
The demonstration, part of a broader movement called the Bulldozer Procession, was strategically timed to disrupt Hasina’s scheduled 9 p.m. address. Many protesters, aligned with the Students Against Discrimination group, viewed her speech as a provocation against the newly formed interim government.
Unrest in Bangladesh has intensified since August 2024, when mass protests forced Hasina to flee to neighboring India.
The interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, has struggled to maintain stability as demonstrations have targeted key symbols of Hasina’s rule. The house of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman—already set ablaze in August—became a focal point of anger once again.
A landmark in Bangladesh’s history, the residence is where Mujibur Rahman, also known as Bangabandhu (Friend of Bengal), declared the country’s independence from Pakistan in 1971. However, it later became the site of a national tragedy when Mujibur Rahman and most of his family were assassinated there in 1975. Hasina, who survived the attack, later converted the building into the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum in honor of her father’s legacy.
"They can demolish a building, but not history. History takes its revenge," Hasina declared in her speech.
She called on Bangladeshis to resist the interim government, accusing it of seizing power unconstitutionally.
Meanwhile, the student-led movement behind the protests has signaled its intent to dismantle the country's 1972 Constitution, which they claim upholds the legacy of Mujibur Rahman’s rule.
