'July Warriors’ hung signboard in burned Awami League office

The office of Thakurgaon district Awami League was left abandoned since it was burned down during the July uprising. A signboard of an organisation named ‘July Juddha’ (July warriors) was hung at an office on Bangabandhu Road in the city today, Wednesday.

According to local sources, after coming to power in 1996, Awami League leaders and activists set up an office on government-owned land beside Bangabandhu Road in Thakurgaon town.

Later, after coming to power in the 2008 elections, a three-story office building was constructed there. During the anti-discrimination movement on 4 August last year, local protestors vandalised and set fire to furniture in the district Awami League office, along with the homes of several local leaders. Since then, the office building remained in a burnt and abandoned state.

Eyewitnesses said that a group of young men suddenly occupied the office around noon today. They then hired workers to clean up the charred furniture, ashes, broken glass from windows, and other debris. Later, they hung a signboard on the office.

A visit to the site revealed that the ground floor of the building houses shops. A PVC signboard has been attached to the grill of the second-floor balcony, which reads, 'July warriors, Thakurgaon'. On one side of the building, the charred signboard of the Awami League office still hangs. Inside the building, cleaning work was ongoing. About ten young men were seen on the third floor, engaged in discussion among themselves.

At the time, a young man named Raihan Apu, identifying himself as the coordinator of July Warriors, said that the district Awami League office was constructed on government land. The Awami League occupied the land and built a party office there.

After the fall of the Awami League government during the student-people's uprising on 4 August last year, protestors set the office on fire. Since then, it had remained abandoned. He added that the Awami League has now been banned due to massacre charges.

Raihan Apu said, “We, who were injured during the July-August uprising, have formed the organisation July Warriors. We have now installed a signboard to use the Awami League’s former office for our social activities. A youth club will be established here, including a gymnasium under its umbrella. All local youths will be able to participate.”

A youth named Hasan Ali showed his July Warriors health card and said, “All of us were injured in the uprising. The July Warriors was formed with the injured individuals. From today, our organisation’s activities will begin in this building. A feast has been arranged in  the evening, and all journalists have been invited. Through the feast, we will formally announce the beginning of our journey.”

A lawyer from Thakurgaon, speaking anonymously, said, “The Awami League obtained the government land through a legal process. Now, placing a new signboard on that land can be considered an act of illegal occupation. Even if the Awami League has been banned, the land allocation hasn't been officially canceled. Any organisation wanting to use the infrastructure must obtain permission from the government through a legal process.”

Attempts were made to contact Thakurgaon deputy commissioner Ishrat Farzana over the phone, but she did not answer.