Bangladesh's government warns of stern action after house where independence was declared is razed

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh’s interim government headed by Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus said Friday it will contain vandalism and arson taking place across the country amid concern from a major Bangladeshi opposition political party and neighboring India over attacks on a historic house linked to ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Mobs targeting supporters of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have vandalized homes and businesses in various parts of the country since Wednesday night. Many of the establishments belonging to former lawmakers, Cabinet members and the leaders of Hasina’s Awami League party were set on fire, apparently as part of a coordinated campaign involving the former home of Bangladesh’s independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman — Hasina's father — in Dhaka, the capital.

Hasina fled the country to India on Aug. 5 amid a student-led mass uprising that ended her 15-year rule.

Early Friday, the Press Wing of Yunus in a brief statement warned that stern actions would be taken against such acts of violence.

“The interim government notes with deep concern that some individuals and groups are attempting to vandalize and torch various institutions and establishments across the country. The government will strongly contain such acts,” the statement said.

It said the government was ready to protect the safety of life and property of the people.

The statement came more than 24 hours after the attack on the building from where Rahman declared Bangladesh’s independence in 1971. The Wednesday night attack followed a daylong campaign on social media by Hasina critics and student leaders. They declared a “bulldozer procession” toward Rahman’s house, which was turned into a museum by Hasina. As the protesters stormed the building, police stood by. A team of military soldiers later attempted to stop them but then left.

An intelligence official in Dhaka told The Associated Press that there were reports of some 70 attacks across Bangladesh since Wednesday following the vandalism and arson in Rahman’s home. The country’s leading English-language Daily Star reported Friday that acts of violence targeting Hasina’s supporters took place in at least 20 districts. Channel 24 TV station in Dhaka reported violence in at least 35 districts across the country. The station said the village home of a veteran politician from Hasina's party and former Bangladesh president, Abdul Hamid, was one of the targets.

In a statement early Friday, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party headed by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, Hasina’s main political rival, urged the Yunus-led government to “bring the situation under control.”

"Otherwise, anarchy will spread across the country. It is a timely demand for us to urge the stringent implementation of law and order and to make the state’s and government’s role more visible,” the statement said.

India, which aided Bangladesh to gain independence from Pakistan in a bloody war in 1971, in a statemen on Thursday condemned the demolition of Rahman’s house, calling the site a symbol of a “heroic resistance.”

It highlighted the role of Rahman’s residence in the formation of Bangladesh’s national identity.

“All those who value the freedom struggle that nurtured Bangla identity and pride are aware of the importance of this residence for the national consciousness of Bangladesh. This act of vandalism should be strongly condemned,” the statement reads.

Bangladeshi political analyst Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah said Thursday that such violence could pose a serious threat to the aspiration of a democratic transition through an election.

“The overlook by the state in preventing such acts of vandalism and anarchy from happening could ignite further chaos. These should not be ignored," he said.

Yunus has said a new election will be held either in December or by June 2026.