Police obstruct as protesters attempt to barge into Bangabhaban

More than two hundred people have been staging demonstrations in front of the Bangabhaban demanding resignation of president Md Shahbuddin.

At one point, the protesters attempted to enter Bangabhaban. But, the police stopped them.

Visiting the area at around 8:20 pm, the protesters were seen trying to breach the barricade to enter the official residence of the president. They were obstructed by the members of the police deployed there.

At around 8:25 pm, the police fired sound grenades to tackle the protesters, which further escalated the situation. At one point, the protesters tried to attack the police.

Following that, the police members moved to the side of Bangabhaban on the other side of the barricade. After that, the protesters removed the water canon placed in between Bangabhaban and RAJUK.

Later, the members of the Bangladesh Army urged the protesters to come down. However, the situation was still quite tense at the time of filing this report at 8:30pm.

Earlier, the protesters took position in front of the official residence of the president under different banners on Tuesday evening. They started staging demonstrations in the road in front of the Bangabhaban in between Motijheel and Gulistan.

At around 5:00 pm the agitated mob blocked one side of the road. Later, they blocked the other side of the road too. It created severe traffic congestion in areas adjacent to the Bangabhaban.

The protesters were staging demonstrations in small groups under separate banners. They were chanting different slogans against the president. They say the president broke his oath. So he has lost the eligibility to hold on to the post of president.

Speaking to Prothom Alo, Saifuddin Muhammad Emdad, a protester under the banner “Raktim July ‘24”, said, “After two and half months of Sheikh Hasina’s resignation, the president is saying that he didn’t get any resignation letter. He lost his eligibility to remain in the post by saying this. The only solution to such a comment is his resignation. We will leave the road as soon as he resigns. Otherwise, we won’t leave.”

Another protester named Ariful Islam said, “President Shahabuddin is a cohort of Sheikh Hasina. He said Sheikh Hasina didn’t resign from his dream of her return to the country. So we will not leave the road until Shahbuddin resigns.”