Bangladesh Student Leader Critically Injured in Assassination Attempt Ahead of Elections

TDT | Manama

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Bangladesh’s interim government announced that student leader Sharif Osman Hadi, critically injured in an assassination attempt, will be flown to Singapore for treatment. Authorities said all expenses will be covered by the state, and an air ambulance with a medical team is ready for his transfer.

Hadi, a senior leader of the student protest group Inqilab Mancha, was shot in the ear by masked attackers on Friday as he left a mosque in Dhaka. The attack comes one day after the government announced the date for the country’s first elections since last year’s student-led uprising that removed former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from power.

Police have launched a manhunt for the suspects, releasing photos of two key individuals and offering a reward of five million taka (around $42,000) for information leading to their arrest. Border security has also been placed on high alert.

Interim leader Muhammad Yunus, the 85-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner overseeing Bangladesh until the February 12 elections, described the shooting as a premeditated attempt by a powerful network to disrupt the electoral process. “The attack is symbolic — meant to show strength and sabotage the elections,” he said.

The government announced new security measures for all political candidates, including protection for their residences, offices, movements, rallies, and online spaces.

Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country of 170 million, will vote to elect 300 lawmakers and hold a referendum on a major democratic reform package on the same day. Political tensions remain high as parties prepare for the polls.