Two new murder cases have been filed against Bangladesh’s deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her former cabinet ministers for the killing of three people, including two BNP activists, during the quota reform protests in the country, according to media reports.
The cases, filed in Dhaka courts on Friday, were the latest in the slew of cases filed against the 76-year-old leader after her resignation and fleeing to India on August 5 following a massive protest by students against a quota system in government jobs.
With this, the tally of cases filed against Hasina has risen to 84, including 70 on murder charges, eight on allegations of crimes against humanity and genocide, three for alleged abduction, and three on other charges, The Daily Star newspaper reported.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) activist Matiur Rahman filed the case in Kishoreganj over the killings of fellow party workers Zulkar Hossain, 38, and Anjana, 28, on August 4.
According to the case statement, a procession of the student movement and BNP activists were attacked by Awami League leaders with firearms, batons and sharp weapons. Some BNP workers took shelter in the house of a district Awami League leader in the nearby Khormaptri area, where they were confined by activists of the Hasina-led party and then set on fire, killing Hossain and Anjana.
As many as 88 people, including Hasina, former road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader, were named as accused in the case.
In Munshiganj, a case was filed over the death of a 22-year-old man, who was shot dead during the student-led movement in the town’s Supermarket area on August 4.
