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Bangladesh’s prime minister Sheikh Hasina is beneath hearth for “shedding crocodile tears” over injury induced to a railway station throughout a protest towards her authorities that left greater than 150 folks useless.
Ms Hasina was seen wiping away tears in footage taken throughout her go to to a metro station in Mirpur, as social media customers lambasted her for what they noticed as her obvious lack of empathy for the victims of violence.
Police fired rubber bullets, launched teargas, and threw sound-grenades in an effort to disperse tens of 1000’s of protesters who got here out onto the streets to rail towards job quotas. The federal government denied that any reside rounds had been fired, however hospital sources mentioned useless and injured folks had wounds from bullets and shotgun pellets.
Rights teams and critics accuse Ms Hasina of turning into more and more autocratic throughout her 15 years in energy. They are saying her time in workplace has been marked by mass arrests of political opponents and activists, pressured disappearances, and extrajudicial killings. She denies all of those expenses.
“What sort of mentality leads them to destroy amenities that make folks’s lives simpler?” the chief was quoted as saying by the Enterprise Normal throughout her go to to Mirpur.
“Dhaka metropolis was clogged with site visitors. The metro rail supplied respite. I can not settle for the destruction of this transport facility made with fashionable expertise,” she mentioned of the station, the place ticket merchandising machines and signalling management stations had been shattered.
The prime minister additionally toured a broken part of Bangladesh Tv (BTV), as she accused the protesters of making an attempt to spoil “Bangladesh’s picture overseas”.
Calling on the general public to assist the federal government discover these chargeable for the vandalism, she mentioned: “Please assist us discover those that are concerned, it doesn’t matter what nook or cranny of the nation they’re in, and convey them to justice.”
Bangladeshi information portal BDNews24 quoted her as saying: “I say to residents and Dhaka residents – those that are chargeable for this struggling and destruction, who’re right this moment spoiling Bangladesh’s picture overseas – I go away to you the duty of bringing them to justice.
“The folks have to be those to deliver those that create obstacles to the livelihoods of the general public to justice, as a result of the one energy within the nation is the ability of the folks.”
Alleging that the protesters have been spreading disinformation, she mentioned: “Don’t permit them to stir unrest by spreading faux propaganda. Everybody should know the reality. They’re nonetheless making calls from London, making an attempt to smash the nation’s honour and fire up expatriates around the globe.”
On Thursday, as she toured the websites that had been broken through the protest, lamenting the vandalism and the affect on public infrastructure, social media customers expressed outrage over her feedback.
“We misplaced 200+ college students. College students who’re referred to as the way forward for a nation. College students who have been solely combating for their very own rights,” wrote a consumer on X/Twitter. “However PM Sheikh Hasina had the time to go watch and ‘cry’ for a metro rail, not for the individuals who gained’t return ever once more.”
“It was the funniest factor I noticed yesterday! Lmao she deserves an award for appearing this difficult and shedding crocodile tears!!!!” wrote one other consumer.
The protests started after college students took to the streets demanding an finish to a quota system that reserves as much as 30 per cent of presidency jobs for kin of veterans who fought in Bangladesh’s battle of independence towards Pakistan in 1971.
The demonstrations started late final month, however tensions escalated final week when college students at Dhaka College, the nation’s largest college, clashed with police, and a counterprotest infected the scenario. The scholars alleged that the protest was peaceable till the scholar wing of the ruling Awami League celebration attacked the protesters.
Badiul Alam Majumdar, the secretary of Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik, a Dhaka-based civil society platform for good governance, mentioned the protests have been “simply the tip of the iceberg” and that the usage of drive towards college students will breed additional resentment towards Ms Hasina’s authorities.
“Individuals are being disadvantaged of their primary rights, with a big lack of human rights and justice. They will’t solid their votes freely,” he mentioned. “This widespread frustration and anger among the many folks is obvious within the protests.”
