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25 August 2024

Can the Bangladesh Police Recover?

Mehedi Hasan Marof and Saqlain Rizve

On August 11, a high official in the Bangladesh police resigned, noting the force has transformed into a “public enemy.”

In his resignation letter, Md Moniruzzaman, an additional deputy inspector general with the Tourist Police in Khulna-Barisal, said, “Over the past 10 years, I was compelled to carry out illegal orders from ministers linked to the Awami League (AL) government.”

These orders, he added, were “brutal and barbaric,” designed to protect an unlawful regime and extend the power and financial gains of certain high-ranking officials.

Moniruzzaman’s resignation came at a time when Bangladesh was grappling with the aftermath of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ouster. Hasina had been in power since 2009, becoming Bangladesh’s longest-serving premier amid accusations of a growing authoritarian streak.

Hasina’s resignation and self-exile on August 5, driven by a massive student-led movement that started over the resurrection of quotas for government jobs, unleashed a wave of unrest across the South Asian nation. Amid the protests, not only Hasina’s government but also Bangladesh’s police force, long seen as an instrument of political repression, crumbled under the weight of public anger.

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