Leaders of the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) have drawn a direct line between the assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on 15 August 1975 and the recent political changeover of 5 August 2024, characterising both events as acts of vengeance by historic adversaries of Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War.
The assertions were made during a discussion meeting convened on Saturday afternoon at the Colonel Taher Auditorium, situated within the JSD central office on Bangabandhu Avenue in Dhaka. Organised to mark the anniversary of the 1975 tragedy, the assembly commenced with party leaders and activists paying floral tributes to the portrait of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, followed by a minute of solemn silence.
According to a press release issued by the party, speakers described 15 August not merely as a dark chapter in the domestic history of Bangladesh, but as a deeply tragic milestone in global political history. JSD leaders argued that the systematic extermination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman alongside most of his family members constituted one of the most brutal tragedies of modern times.
The speakers asserted that the political developments of August 2024 mirror the underlying motivations of August 1975. They maintained that anti-liberation forces and perpetual adversaries of Bangladesh’s sovereignty are actively seeking retribution for their defeat in the 1971 war by executing political vendettas.
In their addresses, JSD leaders linked these historical events to the judicial actions faced by party President Hasanul Haq Inu. They cited the sentence imposed on Inu by the military tribunal under the administration of Ziaur Rahman, comparing it to proceedings involving him before the International Crimes Tribunal, framing both as part of an ongoing political continuum.
Presided over by JSD Central Committee Vice-President Shafiuddin Miah, the discussion featured contributions from central committee member Saifuzzaman Badsha, Joint General Secretary Abdullahil Kajjum, Office Secretary Sajjad Hossain, National Youth Jote President Shariful Kabir Swapan, and Bangladesh Chhatra League (Scientific Socialism) Vice-President Golam Kibria.
The event occurs against the backdrop of shifting state protocol regarding the anniversary. Following the assassination of President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975, the Awami League administration established 15 August as National Mourning Day and a public holiday in 1996. Although the BNP-led four-party alliance revoked the holiday in 2001, a High Court ruling reinstated it in 2008. However, following the recent change in government, the interim administration led by Professor Muhammad Yunus challenged the 2008 verdict. On 2 December 2024, an Appellate Division bench headed by former Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed stayed the High Court judgment, effectively nullifying the official holiday and state observance.
