Dhaka, December 20, 2025
Bangladesh marked a day of national mourning on Saturday with a state funeral for Sharif Osman Hadi, the 32-year-old prominent activist and leader in the 2024 student-led uprising that toppled former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Tens of thousands gathered under heavy security as interim leader Muhammad Yunus paid respects, amid lingering tensions from violent protests triggered by Hadi’s assassination. The funeral, held at the South Plaza of the National Parliament, symbolized both tribute to a revolutionary icon and the fragile state of the nation’s democratic transition ahead of parliamentary elections on February 12, 2026.
Hadi, spokesperson for the Inqilab Mancha platform and a candidate in the upcoming polls, was shot in the head by masked gunmen on motorcycles on December 12 as he left a mosque in Dhaka while campaigning. Initially treated at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, he was airlifted to Singapore General Hospital, where he succumbed to brain stem injuries on December 18. His body arrived back in Dhaka on December 19 amid widespread grief, with Yunus declaring Saturday a day of state mourning—flags flown at half-mast, special prayers nationwide, and a rare honor of burial on Dhaka University campus alongside national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.
Yunus addressed mourners, hailing Hadi as a martyr of the “July Revolution” that ended Hasina’s 15-year rule. “His sacrifice will inspire our march toward true democracy,” Yunus said, while urging restraint to prevent further unrest. High-profile attendees included student coordinators from the 2024 movement, leaders of the National Citizen Party, and Dhaka University officials. Security was paramount, with army, police, and paramilitary forces deployed across the capital following two days of chaos.
Hadi’s death ignited protests starting late December 18, escalating into violence on December 19. Crowds blocked key intersections like Shahbagh Square, demanding justice and swift arrests. Mobs torched offices of major newspapers Prothom Alo and The Daily Star—Bangladesh’s leading Bengali and English dailies—trapping journalists inside amid flames and smoke. Staff escaped, but presses halted for the first time in decades, seen by many as attacks on perceived pro-Hasina or pro-India outlets, though both insist on independence.
Violence spread to Chittagong (Chattogram), where protesters targeted the Indian Assistant High Commission, vandalized cultural sites like Chhayanaut, and attacked properties linked to minorities and political figures.
A Hindu youth, Dipu Chandra Das, was lynched in Mymensingh over alleged blasphemy, drawing condemnation from minority groups like the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council. Homes of politicians, including a Jatiya Party faction leader, were set ablaze.
The interim government condemned the “mob violence by fringe elements,” deploying forces and vowing probes. Yunus’s administration warned that such acts threatened the fragile post-uprising reforms. Rights groups, including Ain O Salish Kendra and Amnesty International, highlighted coordinated assaults as signs of rising extremism, urging independent investigations into Hadi’s killing and media attacks.
Hadi’s profile amplified the crisis. A fiery orator in the 2024 quota protests that morphed into a mass uprising, he was known for anti-India rhetoric, including circulating controversial maps. Yet, fellow student leaders like Mahfuj Alam called for peace in his name, emphasizing institutional democracy over chaos.
Politically, the unrest highlights Bangladesh’s divisions. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), favoured to win February’s vote, navigates the vacuum left by Hasina’s exiled Awami League (sidelined) and re-emerging Jamaat-e-Islami. BNP heir Tarique Rahman plans a December 25 return from exile, while President Mohammed Shahabuddin intends post-election resignation, citing tensions with the interim setup.
Bangladesh, a nation of 175 million, stands at a crossroads. The 2024 revolution promised renewal, but Hadi’s death exposes risks, extremism, media intimidation, minority vulnerabilities, regional strains. Yunus appeals for unity: “Violence cannot derail our democracy.” With elections looming, the coming weeks will test whether grief unites or further fractures this vibrant yet turbulent society.