The wave of attacks at addresses linked to Awami League leaders in Bangladesh that began last night with the demolition of the home of the country’s founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman appeared to bear the footprints of the Pakistani intelligence agency, the ISI, which has expanded its network in the neighbouring country since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government.
Multiple sources in the Indian security establishment and an insider in the Bangladesh armed forces told this newspaper that the latest round of lawlessness — which began with a bulldozer march to Rahman’s 32-Dhanmundi home that Hasina had turned into a museum — was planned by the ISI. The Pakistani agency has developed deep links with radical Islamist student leaders, who are running their writ in the country.
“Some of the prominent student leaders, who are the backbone of Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, had planned the vandalism at the behest of ISI agents... These youths are from radical Islamist outfits like the Jamaat-e-Islami and the Hizb-ut-Tahrir, which have close ISI links,” said a source in the Indian security establishment. “Pakistan’s flag was hoisted at 32 Dhanmundi last night... It was the biggest proof of ISI involvement,” the source added, referring to purported videos that have been circulating in social media.
A source in the Bangladesh armed forces said that the vandals, who had raided Rahman’s home last night and razed it down, were also flying Islamic State (IS) flags from atop 32 Dhanmundi, a historic address in the country that turned into rubble this morning after the attack.
“Yunus and his team have given a free run to ISI in the country... At a time when discussions on the schedule of the next general elections are being discussed by political parties, the country has been pushed into another phase of lawlessness by the ISI, which wants the radical Islamists to remain in power,” the insider in the armed forces of Bangladesh told this correspondent.
Post-Hasina Bangladesh has indeed witnessed a new found bonhomie with Pakistan after the two countries began direct maritime links, got engaged in a joint naval exercise and began clearing the decks for direct flight connectivity. There have also been reports of senior ISI officials visiting Bangladesh in recent months. “These developments are indeed worrying for us,” said an Indian source.
After lying low for a few months since the July-August uprising, the political parties have begun asserting themselves in crisis-ridden Bangladesh. While the Bangladesh Nationalist Party has demanded a clear roadmap for the next elections, the deposed AL has also announced political programmes over the next two weeks.
This vandalism was planned by the ISI to throw the country into another phase of uncertainty with the help of the radical Islamist forces that put Yunus on the saddle, said the Bangladesh Army insider. “They used the anti-AL rhetoric to get the radical Islamists back on the street,” the source explained.
Social media chatter in Bangladesh since last evening confirmed this hypothesis as Facebook live videos, in which some youths were seen speaking against Rahman, his daughter Hasina and AL in Urdu and demanding the Sharia Law went viral.
A post in X in Defence Pakistan, believed to be a proxy of the ISI, further corroborated the involvement of the Pakistani spy agency in last night’s vandalism.
“Bangladeshi revolutionaries have demolished Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s house in Dhanmundi-32, the very place where he conspired with India to break Pakistan. With this not a single remnant of Mujibur Rahman remains in Bangladesh,” read the post.
The Yunus government broke its silence on the vandalism this afternoon, calling it “unexpected and undesirable” before holding a pre-scheduled speech that Hasina delivered to members of the Chhatra League, the student wing of the AL, last night as responsible for the mayhem.
“The inflammatory statements made by fugitive Sheikh Hasina from India against the July uprising have created deep anger among the people, which has manifested in this incident,” read a statement issued by Yunus’s press wing.
This notion was contested by Bahauddin Nasim, joint AL secretary. “There was nothing wrong or inciteful in the address. More importantly, the vandalism was launched even before our leader began her virtual address... Cranes and bulldozers were used to demolish the building, which indicated the government’s involvement,” he told The Telegraph.
He also added that the vandalism was aimed at terrorising the grassroot AL supporters, who are planning to hit the streets against the Yunus regime.
“They can destroy a few buildings, but cannot scare our supporters with such acts of oppression,” he added. BNP standing committee member Hafizuddin Ahmed went a step further and said that the demolition of Rahman’s home was aimed at “destroying democracy”.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh foreign ministrylodged a “strong protest” with India over the “false and fabricated comments and statements” made by Hasina using various media. In a protest note, which was handed over to the acting high commissioner of India in Dhaka, the Yunus government conveyed that her statements were hurting the sentiments of the people in Bangladesh and were not conducive to the efforts at establishing a healthy relationship between the two countries.