Bangladesh Declares National Holiday To Mark Year Of Sheikh Hasina Ouster

August 5 will mark a year since the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh. To mark the event, the interim government in Bangladesh has decided to observe the day as Student-People's Uprising Day and declare it a nationwide public holiday.

On that fateful day, Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had left her official residence as a violent mob was marching towards it. With a serious threat arising over her security, Ms Hasina fled the country. Within an hour of that, the mob ransacked the Gana Bhavan premises.

The interim government has also announced that a committee has been formed for the declaration of the July charter, which is a charter of demands put forward by what the interim government describes as a Student-People's Uprising.

These decisions have been announced by Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki in a press conference held at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka.

The interim government has also announced that programmes will be organised to commemorate the uprising against Sheikh Hasina last year and these programmes will happen between July 14 and August 5.

The Bangladesh Awami League, which was ousted from power, says that the protests were backed by Islamic radicals and it was an attempt to kill the former Prime Minister.

Since the fall of the Hasina government, minorities, especially Hindus have come under attack in Bangladesh. The Awami League has said that under the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, terrorists involved in heinous crimes have been released from prison.

Earlier this year, the Bangladesh Election Commission suspended the registration of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League and banned it contesting the next election, leading to questions about the legitimacy of the elections. The Awami League has been banned under Bangladesh's anti-terror laws.

Elections in Bangladesh are likely to be held before Ramadan next year. The announcement on the possibility of elections before Ramadan came after Muhammad Yunus met Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman in London during his recent visit.