Bangladesh today celebrates the first anniversary of the fall of the authoritarian regime of Sheikh Hasina, which was toppled on august 5, 2024 by a student-led mass uprising.
This year, the interim government, formed following the ouster of the autocratic regime amid unprecedented bloodshed in the history of Bangladesh, is observing a month-long programme to mark the first anniversary of the mass uprising.
The government has already announced August 5 as national holiday.
A number of political parties, along with numerous social and cultural organisations, are also holding 36-day-long programmes, as the movement began on July 1, 2024 and culminated on August 5, 2024.
The interim government is scheduled to unveil the July Proclamation today, which will serve as the formal legal recognition of the uprising.
The 15-year rule of the Hasina-led Awami League came to an abrupt end, following a nationwide uprising that began as a peaceful movement for quota reform in public service recruitment.
The movement, initiated under the banner of Students Against Discrimination, began on July 1, 2024 and soon gained countrywide momentum, especially after state forces responded with violence under the Hasina administration.
On 5 August 2024, amid rains and a nationwide curfew, tens of thousands of students and citizens from all directions marched towards the capital.
Meanwhile, marking the first anniversary of the historic July Uprising Day, interim government chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus in a message paid deep homage to all the martyrs of the July Uprising, who made the ultimate sacrifice in the struggle to free the country from the authoritarian misrule.
鈥楾he July Uprising was an outburst of the youth and the masses against longstanding deprivation, misrule, corruption, looting, enforced disappearances, killings, abductions, the denial of voting rights, and all forms of oppression and tyranny,鈥� he said.
Sheikh Hasina, who had been in power since her party鈥檚 her party鈥檚 landslide victory in the December 2008 election, was airlifted from the Bangabhaban by helicopter, accompanied by her sister Sheikh Rehana, amid mounting pressure and fled to India for shelter.
The resignation of Sheikh Hasina on 5 August 2024 brought an end to her uninterrupted 15-and-a-half-year tenure as prime minister of Bangladesh.
Throughout her time in power, Hasina did not allow any credible or widely accepted national election to take place.
Her government faced widespread allegations ofsuppressing voting rights and freedom of expression, committing serious human rights violations, and engaging in large-scale corruption, and money laundering.
Throughout July, 2024, widespread crackdowns by state forces resulted in the deaths of hundreds of unarmed students and people and injuries to thousands, fuelling broader calls for democratic reforms and eventually the removal of the authoritarian regime.
The movement鈥檚 roots can be traced to June 5 2024, when a High Court ruling invalidated a government circular that had scrapped the quota for descendants of the freedom fighters in public recruitment.
Students from several public universities quickly mobilised into protests, gathering at Dhaka University and elsewhere, demanding a full parliamentary reform of the quota system.
Despite students giving the government the June 30 deadline to meet their demands, no legislative steps were taken in this regard.
The situation escalated following the Supreme Court鈥檚 July 4 decision to uphold the earlier High Court verdict.
On July 6, students launched a national campaign called 鈥楤angla Blockade,鈥� which brought Dhaka and several other cities to a standstill.
On July 14, protests erupted on university campuses across the country after then prime minister Sheikh Hasina questioned whether the grandchildren of razakars should receive quotas instead of those of freedom fighters.
The remark, made during a press conference at the Ganabhaban, sparked backlash from students, who called it disparaging for them.
Hundreds of students, including from Dhaka University, burst out to the streets around midnight in protest against the remark.
On July 15, Bangladesh Chhatra League and AL affiliate members attacked students at Dhaka University and Dhaka Medical College, injuring over 300.
On July 16, six students were killed in clashes in Dhaka, Chattogram, and Rangpur, leading to an indefinite closure of educational institutions e by authorities and the deployment of Border Guard Bangladesh personnel to quell the protests.
The shooting death of Abu Sayeed, a student of Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur, allegedly by police on that day marked a turning point in the student movement, which ultimately erupted into a nationwide uprising.
The government intensified attacks on protestors, shutting down internet services all over the country on July 18, while 29 people, including students, were killed on the day.
Amid a mounting death toll, protesters announced a nationwide 鈥榗omplete shutdown鈥�, excluding emergency services, while 66 people were killed on July 19.
Despite a temporary curfew and military deployment from July 20, the movement gained further momentum as prominent movement organisers were detained.
On August 2, students, parents, professionals, and people from all walks of life joined a mass procession titled 鈥楧roho Jatra鈥� (Rebellion March) in the capital city, which began in front of the National Press Club and ended at the Central Shaheed Minar. The mass rally at the Shaheed Minar demanded the resignation of the AL-led government.
On August 3, students issued a one-point demand: the resignation of Sheikh Hasina and called for a 鈥楳arch to Dhaka鈥� from the whole of the country on August 6.
On August 4, over 100 people were killed in nationwide clashes and student leaders advanced the 鈥楳arch to Dhaka鈥� programme for August 5.
Thus the final wave against the anti-Hasina government came on August 5, as thousands upon thousands of people defied the curfew and marched towards the capital from all directions. Violent clashes erupted and, by the afternoon, Sheikh Hasina stepped down and fled the country.
As the July movement-turned-uprising culminated in the victory of people against Hasina on August 5, the day was, and still is, fondly referred to as July 36.
At least 836 people, including children, were martyred and more than 15,000 were injured during the July movement, official data show.
