Saturday, 20 December, 2025
Bangladesh stands still today — yet burns with grief.
At 2:30pm on Saturday, thousands are expected to gather at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban for the namaz-e-janaza of Sharif Osman Hadi, a 32-year-old revolutionary figure whose life ended far from home but whose death has shaken the nation to its core.
His burial beside national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam on the Dhaka University campus, in line with his family’s wishes, carries a symbolism impossible to miss: a young voice of resistance laid to rest among the nation’s immortal consciences. But even as prayers are offered, Bangladesh remains gripped by anger, fear and unanswered questions.
Hadi’s death late Thursday night in a Singapore hospital, after six agonising days on life support, has triggered the most volatile unrest since the July 2024 student uprising that toppled Sheikh Hasina’s government.
Shot in the head in a targeted attack on December 12, Hadi never regained consciousness. Doctors confirmed catastrophic brain-stem damage, while Singapore’s foreign ministry said he died despite “the best efforts” of medical teams.
By the time his body returned to Dhaka on Friday evening, the country was already on edge. Within hours of the news breaking, roadblocks, torch-lit marches, symbolic funerals and violent protests swept across cities and towns. For many Bangladeshis, Hadi’s killing did not feel like an isolated crime; it felt like the return of a familiar nightmare — dissent once again answered with bullets.
Grief soon turned combustible. Across Dhaka and several districts, protesters demanded the immediate arrest and “exemplary punishment” of those responsible. Students, activists and ordinary citizens chanted a single, desperate demand: justice. Yet alongside mourning came destruction.
Offices of Prothom Alo, The Daily Star, Udichi, Chhayanaut and other media and cultural institutions were vandalised or set ablaze. A fire broke out at Udichi’s office near the National Press Club on Friday evening, prompting emergency intervention. At The Daily Star, journalists and staff were trapped inside a burning building for hours, according to the newspaper’s own account.
On Thursday, after Hadi's death news, supporters and activists of July Moncho gathered at Shahbagh in the capital city, bringing traffic to a halt from around 10:30 pm. Chanting slogans and calling for the trial of those responsible, protesters mourned Hadi, who died in Singapore while undergoing treatment for gunshot injuries sustained in Dhaka.
Simultaneously, demonstrations broke out on the Dhaka University campus. Students from several residential halls marched to the Teacher–Student Centre (TSC) under the banner of Anti-Imperialist Students, staging a protest marked by emotional speeches and sharp criticism of the authorities. Addressing the gathering, DUCSU Social Welfare Secretary AB Zubair said the killing reflected a catastrophic failure of state protection.
“After thousands of lives have already been lost, why did we have to lose Hadi as well?” he asked. “The police knew, the killers were near him. The intelligence agencies knew. Yet Hadi was killed under their watch. If they did not know, then why are they paid?”
Accusing the interim government of negligence, Zubair said, “The so-called civilised discuss matters on talk shows, while we are being pushed into a killing field.”
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has described the violence as part of a conspiracy to destabilise the country and make the next parliamentary elections uncertain. On the streets, however, many see something more visceral — an eruption of long-suppressed rage in a nation where justice has too often arrived too late, or not at all.
As Sharif Osman Hadi is laid to rest, one question hangs over the nation — heavy, unresolved and dangerous: will his death close a chapter, or ignite another long and perilous struggle in Bangladesh’s unfinished fight for accountability, sovereignty and democratic truth?
Why is Bangladesh on fire over Hadi's death?
Sharif Osman Hadi was not a conventional politician. He rose from the 2024 student-led uprising as a spokesperson and convenor of Inqilab Moncho — the “Platform for Revolution” — and quickly became one of the defining voices of a generation that challenged entrenched power and political fear. He was preparing to contest the Dhaka-8 constituency in elections expected in February 2026.
Outspoken and uncompromising, Hadi was also a fierce critic of India’s role in Bangladesh’s domestic politics, particularly after Sheikh Hasina fled to India following her ouster. To his supporters, he represented moral clarity in a compromised political landscape. To his critics, he was provocative. To millions of young Bangladeshis, he was simply one of their own — articulate, defiant and unafraid.
Police launched a nationwide manhunt immediately after the shooting. CCTV stills showing two black-clad assailants on a motorcycle were released, along with a Tk 5 million reward. At least 20 people linked to the incident have reportedly been detained, but the gunmen themselves remain at large.
The widespread belief — fuelled by social media and echoed by some political figures — that the attackers fled to India has intensified already raw anti-India sentiment. Indian diplomatic missions have come under attack, while protesters openly accuse New Delhi of shielding the perpetrators, though no official confirmation has been provided. For an interim government struggling to steady a fractured nation, the optics could scarcely be worse.
Interim leader Muhammad Yunus has described Hadi’s death as “an irreparable loss for the nation” and warned that Bangladesh’s democratic journey cannot be halted through fear or bloodshed. A half-day of national mourning has been declared. Yet for many Bangladeshis, words now ring hollow.
The trauma of July 2024 still looms large, when nearly 1,400 people were killed as security forces crushed student protests following orders later directly linked to Sheikh Hasina. Her conviction in absentia for crimes against humanity has not brought closure, and India’s continued refusal to extradite her has only deepened public resentment. Hadi’s killing has torn that wound open once more.
Today’s janaza will not be merely a farewell prayer. It will be a collective reckoning — for a generation that rose up once, paid a terrible price, and now fears history repeating itself.
Bangladesh is burning not simply because a young leader was killed, but because his death symbolises something far more painful: the fear that even after revolution, justice remains fragile, power remains obscured, and the lives of dissenters remain expendable.
As Sharif Osman Hadi is laid to rest, one question hangs over the nation — heavy, unresolved and dangerous: will his death close a chapter, or ignite another long and perilous struggle in Bangladesh’s unfinished fight for accountability, sovereignty and democratic truth?
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Bangladesh stands still today — yet burns with grief.
At 2:30pm on Saturday, thousands are expected to gather at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban for the namaz-e-janaza of Sharif Osman Hadi, a 32-year-old revolutionary figure whose life ended far from home but whose death has shaken the nation to its core.
His burial beside national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam on the Dhaka University campus, in line with his family’s wishes, carries a symbolism impossible to miss: a young voice of resistance laid to rest among the nation’s immortal consciences. But even as prayers are offered, Bangladesh remains gripped by anger, fear and unanswered questions.
Hadi’s death late Thursday night in a Singapore hospital, after six agonising days on life support, has triggered the most volatile unrest since the July 2024 student uprising that toppled Sheikh Hasina’s government.
Shot in the head in a targeted attack on December 12, Hadi never regained consciousness. Doctors confirmed catastrophic brain-stem damage, while Singapore’s foreign ministry said he died despite “the best efforts” of medical teams.
By the time his body returned to Dhaka on Friday evening, the country was already on edge. Within hours of the news breaking, roadblocks, torch-lit marches, symbolic funerals and violent protests swept across cities and towns. For many Bangladeshis, Hadi’s killing did not feel like an isolated crime; it felt like the return of a familiar nightmare — dissent once again answered with bullets.
Grief soon turned combustible. Across Dhaka and several districts, protesters demanded the immediate arrest and “exemplary punishment” of those responsible. Students, activists and ordinary citizens chanted a single, desperate demand: justice. Yet alongside mourning came destruction.
Offices of Prothom Alo, The Daily Star, Udichi, Chhayanaut and other media and cultural institutions were vandalised or set ablaze. A fire broke out at Udichi’s office near the National Press Club on Friday evening, prompting emergency intervention. At The Daily Star, journalists and staff were trapped inside a burning building for hours, according to the newspaper’s own account.
On Thursday, after Hadi's death news, supporters and activists of July Moncho gathered at Shahbagh in the capital city, bringing traffic to a halt from around 10:30 pm. Chanting slogans and calling for the trial of those responsible, protesters mourned Hadi, who died in Singapore while undergoing treatment for gunshot injuries sustained in Dhaka.
Simultaneously, demonstrations broke out on the Dhaka University campus. Students from several residential halls marched to the Teacher–Student Centre (TSC) under the banner of Anti-Imperialist Students, staging a protest marked by emotional speeches and sharp criticism of the authorities. Addressing the gathering, DUCSU Social Welfare Secretary AB Zubair said the killing reflected a catastrophic failure of state protection.
“After thousands of lives have already been lost, why did we have to lose Hadi as well?” he asked. “The police knew, the killers were near him. The intelligence agencies knew. Yet Hadi was killed under their watch. If they did not know, then why are they paid?”
Accusing the interim government of negligence, Zubair said, “The so-called civilised discuss matters on talk shows, while we are being pushed into a killing field.”
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has described the violence as part of a conspiracy to destabilise the country and make the next parliamentary elections uncertain. On the streets, however, many see something more visceral — an eruption of long-suppressed rage in a nation where justice has too often arrived too late, or not at all.
As Sharif Osman Hadi is laid to rest, one question hangs over the nation — heavy, unresolved and dangerous: will his death close a chapter, or ignite another long and perilous struggle in Bangladesh’s unfinished fight for accountability, sovereignty and democratic truth?
Why is Bangladesh on fire over Hadi's death?
Sharif Osman Hadi was not a conventional politician. He rose from the 2024 student-led uprising as a spokesperson and convenor of Inqilab Moncho — the “Platform for Revolution” — and quickly became one of the defining voices of a generation that challenged entrenched power and political fear. He was preparing to contest the Dhaka-8 constituency in elections expected in February 2026.
Outspoken and uncompromising, Hadi was also a fierce critic of India’s role in Bangladesh’s domestic politics, particularly after Sheikh Hasina fled to India following her ouster. To his supporters, he represented moral clarity in a compromised political landscape. To his critics, he was provocative. To millions of young Bangladeshis, he was simply one of their own — articulate, defiant and unafraid.
Police launched a nationwide manhunt immediately after the shooting. CCTV stills showing two black-clad assailants on a motorcycle were released, along with a Tk 5 million reward. At least 20 people linked to the incident have reportedly been detained, but the gunmen themselves remain at large.
The widespread belief — fuelled by social media and echoed by some political figures — that the attackers fled to India has intensified already raw anti-India sentiment. Indian diplomatic missions have come under attack, while protesters openly accuse New Delhi of shielding the perpetrators, though no official confirmation has been provided. For an interim government struggling to steady a fractured nation, the optics could scarcely be worse.
Interim leader Muhammad Yunus has described Hadi’s death as “an irreparable loss for the nation” and warned that Bangladesh’s democratic journey cannot be halted through fear or bloodshed. A half-day of national mourning has been declared. Yet for many Bangladeshis, words now ring hollow.
The trauma of July 2024 still looms large, when nearly 1,400 people were killed as security forces crushed student protests following orders later directly linked to Sheikh Hasina. Her conviction in absentia for crimes against humanity has not brought closure, and India’s continued refusal to extradite her has only deepened public resentment. Hadi’s killing has torn that wound open once more.
Today’s janaza will not be merely a farewell prayer. It will be a collective reckoning — for a generation that rose up once, paid a terrible price, and now fears history repeating itself.
Bangladesh is burning not simply because a young leader was killed, but because his death symbolises something far more painful: the fear that even after revolution, justice remains fragile, power remains obscured, and the lives of dissenters remain expendable.
As Sharif Osman Hadi is laid to rest, one question hangs over the nation — heavy, unresolved and dangerous: will his death close a chapter, or ignite another long and perilous struggle in Bangladesh’s unfinished fight for accountability, sovereignty and democratic truth?
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