Bangladesh student leader boasts of killing Hindu police officer during 2024 protests

New Delhi: A viral video from Bangladesh has sparked widespread outrage after a local leader of the Students Against Discrimination (SAD), the student platform that spearheaded the 2024 protests leading to the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, appeared to boast about involvement in the killing of a Hindu police officer during the unrest.

In the footage, filmed last week at a police station in Habiganj district, Mahdi Hasan, identified as the general secretary (or district member secretary) of SAD’s Habiganj unit, is seen arguing with a police officer over the arrest of an activist. During the exchange, Hasan reportedly boasted threateningly, “We burned down the Baniachong Police Station, we set SI Santosh on fire.” He was referring to the events on 5 August 2024, the day mass protests culminated in Hasina’s resignation and flight from the country.

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The remarks point to the violent attack on Baniachong Police Station in Habiganj, where Sub-Inspector Santosh, a Hindu officer, was killed by a mob. Many accounts indicate that the station was set ablaze amid escalating clashes. The body of Sub-Inspector Santosh was left on the road, desecrated and displayed publicly, before being recovered. Students Against Discrimination has responded by issuing a show-cause notice to Hasan, seeking his explanation for the remarks, which the group described as potentially breaching discipline.

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The 2024 protests, initially against civil service job quotas, evolved into a broader anti-Hasina government movement, resulting in hundreds of deaths nationwide. Post-uprising, human rights groups documented attacks on minorities, including Hindus, amid reports of vandalism, looting, and violence.

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The situation of minorities remains deplorable since the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus took charge after the toppling of the Hasina government in August of 2024 following mass protests. In December 2025, a surge in violence against Hindu minorities was seen in Bangladesh. A 27-year-old Hindu garment unit worker, Dipu Chandra Das, was beaten to death and his body set on fire by a mob in Bangladesh’s Mymensingh district. The incident occurred amid heightened communal tensions following the killing of youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi on 18 December.