A court in Bangladesh launched a murder investigation on Tuesday against ousted ex-premier Sheikh Hasina and six senior officials from her administration, following the police killing of a man during last month’s civil unrest.
Hasina, 76, fled to neighboring India by helicopter a week ago as mass protests erupted in Dhaka, marking a dramatic end to her authoritarian rule.
“A case has been filed against Sheikh Hasina and six others,” said Mamun Mia, a lawyer representing a private citizen in the matter. He added that the Dhaka Metropolitan Court instructed the police to accept “the murder case against the accused,” initiating a criminal investigation as per Bangladeshi law.
The case also implicates Hasina’s former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan and Obaidul Quader, the general secretary of her Awami League party.
Additionally, it names four high-ranking police officials who were appointed by Hasina’s government and have since left their positions, including former police inspector general Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, detective branch chief Harun-or-Rashid, and senior Dhaka Metropolitan Police officers Habibur Rahman and Biplob Kumar Sarker.
