[🇧🇩] Those who have laid down their lives to free Bangladesh

[Saif]

Eight projects in ADP for July uprising victims

Several ministries and divisions have proposed a total of eight projects, with a combined estimated cost of over Tk 38.13 billion, for honouring and rehabilitating the participants and victims of the July 2024 student-led anti-discrimination uprising. The initiatives have been taken to address soc

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Eight projects in ADP for July uprising victims

JAHIDUL ISLAM
Published :
Jun 15, 2025 00:07
Updated :
Jun 15, 2025 00:07

Several ministries and divisions have proposed a total of eight projects, with a combined estimated cost of over Tk 38.13 billion, for honouring and rehabilitating the participants and victims of the July 2024 student-led anti-discrimination uprising.

The initiatives have been taken to address social protection, economic empowerment, housing, and commemorative needs of those injured, bereaved, or otherwise affected by the historic movement, according to a senior official of the Planning Commission.

All of these projects submitted by six different ministries have been included in the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for the upcoming fiscal year without approval and allocation in order to expedite the approval process.

An analysis of the ADP book reveals that several agencies under the Ministry of Social Welfare, Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Ministry of Housing and Public Works, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Ministry of Youth and Sports, and the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs are slated to implement these projects.

The National Housing Authority under the Ministry of Housing and Public Works will spend the highest Tk 27.22 billion to implement two separate projects with an aim of providing permanent housing facilities to the families of those who were injured and martyred in the July Movement.

Under the projects a total of 25 fourteen-storey residential buildings in Sections 9 and 16 of Dhaka's Mirpur area will be built. These flats are intended to be provided free of cost to the families of martyrs and those seriously injured during the July 2024 uprising.

According to the project proposal, each martyr's family will receive a 1,250 square feet flat, while individuals classified as Class A injured will be allotted 1,000 square feet flats each.

The project sites will feature essential amenities, including educational institutions, mosques, markets, community centers, playgrounds, roads, and full utility services such as water, gas, and electricity.

Construction is expected to begin this year, with the flats scheduled for handover by June 2029, a senior official of the National Housing Authority confirmed.

The Ministry of Social Welfare proposed a project titled "Social Safety Inclusion and Self-reliance for Victims of the Anti-Discrimination Student-People's Movement" at an estimated cost of Tk 750 million.

The project is aimed at providing social safety net support, financial aid, and empowerment services to victims who were injured or socially and economically affected. The Department of Social Services (DSS) will implement the project by December 2027.

Recognizing the gender-specific vulnerabilities during the movement, the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs has proposed a project worth Tk 2.50 billion to identify and support women who suffered during the July uprising.

Under the supervision of the Department of Women Affairs, the project is aimed at ensuring targeted psychosocial support, health services, and reintegration opportunities for affected women.

The government is also focused on documenting and archiving the uprising as part of the national historical record. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting proposed two projects involving estimated costs of Tk 963.95 million. The Bangladesh Film Archive will receive Tk 491.1 million for the collection and preservation of audiovisual documentation from both domestic and international sources related to the uprising.

The Department of Archives and Libraries will establish a digital oral history archive with an allocation of Tk 472.85 million. The archive will preserve the voices and experiences of victims, witnesses, and participants for future generations.

The Ministry of Youth and Sports, through the Department of Youth Development, has outlined a project titled "Socio-Economic Empowerment of Injured and Martyred Families through Skills Training and Self-Employment Creation".

With an allocation of Tk 6.50 billion, this initiative will offer vocational training and startup support to ensure long-term economic rehabilitation for affected individuals.

To honour those who lost their lives, the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs has proposed a Tk 200 million project to construct epitaphs at the burial sites of those martyred in the July 2024 uprising.

This symbolic gesture is aimed at formally recognising the sacrifices made and preserve their memory, reveal the project documents.

The projects represent a comprehensive, multi-ministerial effort to respond to the wide-ranging impact of the July 2024 uprising, which was driven by students and supported by broader civil society to protest against systemic discrimination.​

 

[Saif]

Many victims yet to get any help

Sufferings and disappointment of the people wounded in the July uprising deepens on as many of them have yet to receive any or furhter financial help from the July Shaheed Smrity Foundation...

www.newagebd.net

Many victims yet to get any help
Kamrun Nahar Sumy 20 July, 2025, 23:54

Sufferings and disappointment of the people wounded in the July uprising deepens on as many of them have yet to receive any or furhter financial help from the July Shaheed Smrity Foundation.

The foundation, launched on September 17, 2024 with an initial amount of Tk 100 crore from the chief adviser’s relief and welfare fund, was meant to support uprising victims.

The foundation has until July 15 disbursed Tk 1,00,000 each to 6,691 wounded individuals in the first phase and Tk 5,00,000 each to 806, out of 852, families, of the martyred.

Out of the 14,541 people registered as wounded with the government, keeping to the foundation, 8,718 have sought help. And, 523 people have also received the second-phase grant.

But many have yet to receive any help. There are 2,027 such victims while the victims who have received the first-phase grant keep struggling to get the grant for the next phase.

Md Rakibul Islam, who has received the first-phase grant, has said, ‘They just don’t care about us.’ Rakibul, who walks with crutches, has visited the foundation seven to eight times.

Rakibul, who lives at Savar, was wounded on August 4, 2024 as a law enforcer’s vehicle ran over him in front of Jahangirnagar University.

He visited the foundation on July 2 with a mind to go on a fast unto death as he has not received the second-phase grant.

‘I have been jobless for a year. I can’t fold the right leg. It is difficult to walk to the foundation repeatedly,’ he said. ‘Sometimes, I don’t have money to pay the fare,’ said Rakibul, father of a three-year-old daughter.

The foundation has told Rakibul, a Category B victim, that he would receive the grant once the amended category list was notified.

The foundation’s chief executive officer Kamal Akbar, a retired colonel, said on July 13 that the foundation did not have enough funds to help all the victims.

‘The initial plan was to manage the funds through the liberation war affairs ministry. But the government has later decided to provide the wounded with monthly allowance.’ he said.

‘We have to make the wounded understand that they would be receiving the money in monthly allowance,’ he said, noting that the foundation, which had about Tk 8 crore on July 12, now has Tk 1.20 crore.

The foundation has decided that Category A victims, who were critically injured and have lost limbs, will get Tk 4,00,000 in grant, Category B victims, who were severely injured but have not lost any limbs, will receive Tk 3,00,000 and Category C victims, who were injured but can work, will receive Tk 2,00,000.

Among the 600 wounded classified in Category A, 220 have yet to get the second-phase grant until July 13.

In the first phase, victims of all categories will receive Tk 1,00,000 and the remaining amount will be given in the second phase.

As for fund shortage, finance adviser Salehuddin Ahmed has said that the government has allocated Tk 30,00,000 each for martyr’s family.

The government will provide the injured with a regular allowance and has issued health cards for them to ensure their treatment in public hospitals, he said.

The government is considering rehabilitation of the martyr families who lost their earning members by providing them with jobs, he added. The finance ministry has already allocated funds and designated two areas at Mirpur in Dhaka to build flats for the victims.

The injured, some on crutches, even from outlying areas, meanwhile, keep visiting the foundation repeatedly, hoping to get financial help even to repay treatment-related loans, cover follow-up medical expenses or ensure their daily meals.

About 25 of the injured, some admitted to hospitals in Dhaka, vandalised the foundation’s office on July 8 after they had failed to get the second-phase grant despite being repeatedly promised.

The foundation on July 13 provided 73 of the injured, including some of whom vandalised the office, with the second-phase grant.

Saiful Islam, a carpenter shot in the left leg at Azampur of Uttara in Dhaka on July 19, 2024, who sought help about three months ago and has since visited the foundation six to seven times, has yet to receive any support.

‘I have a debt of Tk 50,000. I borrowed the amount for treatment. I was forced to seek care in a private hospital,’ said Saiful, father of five children.

Since the foundation began its activities, victims and their families have alleged mismanagement, inefficiency and nepotism in fund disbursement.

The foundation, with an operational cost of Tk 3 crore a year coming from the local government, rural development and co-operatives ministry, has run into frauds.

It has identified 39 fraudulent claims of injury and five claims of death. The foundation has already disbursd money in some fraudulent claims and ‘mistakenly’ gave Tk 5,00,000 each twice to five martyr families.

The foundation has said that it has served legal notices on the frauds having made false claims, asking them to return the money.

The government on January 15 notified a list of 834 martyrs, followed by another notification on July 1 with a list of 10 more individuals as martyrs of the uprising.​

 

[Saif]

ABU SAYEED MURDER: Charge hearing begins at ICT

The International Crimes Tribunal-2 on Monday began hearing charges of crimes against humanity against former Begum Rokeya University vice-chancellor Hasibur Rashid Bachchu and 29 others for the murder of Abu Sayeed during the July 2024 uprising.

www.newagebd.net

ABU SAYEED MURDER: Charge hearing begins at ICT
Staff Correspondent 29 July, 2025, 00:27

Abu Sayeed | File photo

The International Crimes Tribunal-2 on Monday began hearing charges of crimes against humanity against former Begum Rokeya University vice-chancellor Hasibur Rashid Bachchu and 29 others for the murder of Abu Sayeed during the July 2024 uprising.

Abu Sayeed, a student of English at the university, was shot dead near the university gate on July 16, 2024, during the students’ protests against discrimination.

His death sparked nationwide protests that eventually turned into the student-led mass uprising to oust then prime minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024.

The three-member tribunal of retired High Court judge Nozrul Islam Chowdhury, retired district judge Md Manjurul Basid and judge Nur Mohammad Shahriar Kabir adjourned the hearing till today after hearing submissions from chief prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam.

Four lawyers appointed by the tribunal will defend 24 of the accused who are still in hiding.

The prosecution submitted formal charges against the 30 on July 1.

During the hearing, defence lawyer Azizur Rahman Dulu sought a seven-day adjournment for preparing arguments for his client, constable Sujan Chandra Roy.

The tribunal rejected the request and warned him against delaying the trial. The prosecution told the tribunal that Dulu had repeatedly refused to accept certified copies of documents related to his client and only received them on Monday after being asked.

The tribunal ruled that Dulu might present his arguments only after all other defence submissions.

Six of the accused are currently in custody. They are the university proctor Shariful Islam, staff members Anwar Parvez Appel and Rafiul Hasan Rasel, police sub-inspector Amir Hossain, constable Sujan Chandra Roy and banned Bangladesh Chhatra League leader Imran Chowdhury Akash.

Nine other staff of the university — former vice-chancellor Hasibur Rashid Bachchu, associate professors Md Mashiur Rahman and Asaduzzaman Mondol Asad, assistant registrar Md Hafizur Rahman Tufan, section officer Md Moniruzzaman Palash and MLSS Mohammad Nurunnabi Mandal, Nur-e-Alam Mia, Mahabubar Rahman Babu and AKM Amir Hossain Amu — are still in hiding.

Six fugitive police officers members are former Rangpur Metropolitan Police commissioner Md Moniruzzaman Beltu, former deputy commissioner Md Abu Maruf Hossain Titu, former additional deputy commissioner Md Shah Noor Alam Patwari Suman, former assistant commissioner Md Arifuzzaman Jibon, former Tajhat police station officer-in-charge Rabiul Islam Nayan and university police camp in-charge sub-inspector Bibhuti Bhushan Roy Madhav.

Eight absconding Chhatra League leaders are BRUR unit president Pomel Barua, vice-presidents Fazzle Rabbi alias Glorious Fazle Rabbi and Md Akhtar Hossan, general secretary Md Mahafuzur Rahman Shamim, joint secretary Masudul Hasan Masud, organising secretaries Sejan Ahmed Arif and Dhanojoy Kumar Tagor and office secretary Babul Hossain.

The rest fugitive is Dr Sarowat Hossain Chandan, a forensic expert and member of the pro-Awami League doctors’ association Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad, who allegedly falsified the post-mortem report.​

 

[Saif]

Court orders exhumation of 114 bodies of July Uprising victims for identification

A Dhaka court has ordered the exhumation of 114 bodies buried as unidentified victims of last year’s Anti-discrimination Student Movement, to confirm their identities and enable legal procedures. The order was issued on Monday by Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Mustafizur Rahman in re

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Court orders exhumation of 114 bodies of July Uprising victims for identification

Published :
Aug 04, 2025 20:06
Updated :
Aug 04, 2025 20:06

A Dhaka court has ordered the exhumation of 114 bodies buried as unidentified victims of last year’s Anti-discrimination Student Movement, to confirm their identities and enable legal procedures.

The order was issued on Monday by Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Mustafizur Rahman in response to a petition filed by Mohammadpur Police Sub-Inspector Md Mahidul Islam.

Additional Public Prosecutor Md Shamsuddoha Suman said the victims, men and women of various ages, died during different phases of the movement. Their bodies were buried at the Rayer Bazar graveyard as unidentified.

The petition noted that postmortem reports had already been prepared, and and DNA samples were now required for identification, reports bdnews24.com.

Once identities are confirmed, the bodies could be formally handed over to families based on legal procedure and requests.

After reviewing the case documents, the magistrate granted the application and directed the Dhaka district magistrate to appoint an executive magistrate and ensure necessary arrangements.​

 

[Saif]

STATE BENEFITS FOR JULY MARTYRS: Families in straits as rule applies unequally

State benefits for families of July martyrs have sparked off disputes, resentment and insecurity as the disbursement rule has not been applied equally to all cases.

www.newagebd.net

STATE BENEFITS FOR JULY MARTYRS: Families in straits as rule applies unequally
Kamrun Nahar Sumy 13 August, 2025, 00:29

State benefits for families of July martyrs have sparked off disputes, resentment and insecurity as the disbursement rule has not been applied equally to all cases.

Some widows have received the full one-time grant of Tk 30 lakh, in savings certificates, in the first phase while some others have received varying amounts.

Mariam, mother of three young children, has not received any payment while her in-laws have received Tk 10 lakh. But, Maria Sultana Rakhi, who has a daughter three years old, has received the grant of Tk 10 lakh.

The amount has also varied. Nasrin Akter, widow of Towhidur Rahaman Rana, has received Tk 6.25 lakh, Jamena Tuj Jahara, widow of Nisan Khan, Tk 6.66 lakh and Farhana Islam Popy, widow of journalist Mehedi Hasan, Tk 7 lakh.

The uprising, which toppled the Awami League regime on August 5, 2024, left many families, especially widows and children, in financial straits.

Several families have said that the inequitable disbursement of aid has only plunged them into further insecurity and disappointment.

Mariam, who lives in a rented house in Gazipur with her two sons and a daughter, has said, ‘My father-in-law has three other sons. He has received the entire amount and he has given me nothing.’

‘My children are still young. How will I manage the expenses?’ she has added.

Mariam’s father-in-law Razzak Hawladar, who lives in Madaripur, has said, ‘I have given her Tk 2 lakh. I want to deposit the rest in the grandchildren’s names for future use.’

Government officials have said that the distribution followed the inheritance law, the shariah for the Muslims and the Hindu law for the Hindus.

The liberation war affairs secretary Ishrat Chowdhury on August 10 said, ‘Rules on this are pending approval. We hope it will happen this week. We have made the rules in keeping with inheritance laws so that no one is deprived.’

Legal experts argue that applying inheritance laws is not mandatory in this case. The government should consider the family circumstances and distribute the money, keeping to their needs.

Supreme Court lawyer Tanim Hussain Shawon, a member of the judicial reforms commission, has said that inheritance laws apply when a person dies leaving behind property and wealth.

‘In this case, the aid should be distributed after assessing the situation. Martyrs who have left behind a widow with children should be given high priority,’ he said.

Senior Supreme Court lawyer Salahuddin Dolon has said that the distribution should be handled case by case, depending on the situation and needs.

Several widows have said that 150–200 of the 836 officially recognised martyrs have left behind widows and children who are unwelcome to their in-laws’, noting that the children are unlikely to inherit property.

‘I was on good terms with the in-laws. But, they’ve abandoned me after my husband died,’ said Nasrin, widow of Towhidur Rahman.

Her three-year-old daughter has thalassaemia and will need medication for the rest of her life.

‘My husband wanted our daughter to become a researcher. If the government discriminates based on gender, what’s the point in sacrificing so many lives for a country free of discrimination?’ the 30-year-old Nasrin has said.

The widows are also concerned whether the government would share the monthly allowance of Tk 20,000 keeping to the inheritance laws as the allowance would be important for their subsistence.

Mohammad Faruk Hosen, a joint secretary to the liberation war affairs ministry who looks after the Directorate for July Mass Uprising activities, has said, ‘We have initially considered the inheritance laws. In cases with disputes, we will act on the advisory council’s decisions.’

Mehedi Hasan’s widow Farhana Islam has said, ‘We have no objection to our in-laws taking a portion of the one-time grant.’

‘But, we don’t want to share the monthly allowance as our children are young,’ she has added. ‘The government should make clear the disbursement rule and equally apply it to all cases.’​

 

[Saif]

Exhumation of 114 unidentified July martyrs to begin at Rayerbazar Graveyard

The bodies of 114 unidentified martyrs of the July Uprising will be exhumed from Rayerbazar Graveyard in the capital starting Sunday for identification through post-mortem and DNA testing. "We are preparing for exhumation of bodies of July Martyrs buried in Rayerbazar Graveyard tomorrow following

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Exhumation of 114 unidentified July martyrs to begin at Rayerbazar Graveyard

BSS
Published :
Dec 06, 2025 20:47
Updated :
Dec 06, 2025 20:47

The bodies of 114 unidentified martyrs of the July Uprising will be exhumed from Rayerbazar Graveyard in the capital starting Sunday for identification through post-mortem and DNA testing.

"We are preparing for exhumation of bodies of July Martyrs buried in Rayerbazar Graveyard tomorrow following a Dhaka court order," Special Police Super of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Md Jasim Uddin Khan, said.

The exhumation process will begin tomorrow morning, and the recovered bodies will be reburied with proper respect after DNA samples and post-mortem examinations.

CID Chief Additional Inspector General of the CID Md. Sibgat Ullah will hold a briefing around 9:30am tomorrow at the graveyard, next to the Rayerbazar Memorial, before the exhumation begins.

Forensic expert Louis Fondebrider and a team of forensic anthropologists will also be present during the process.

CID officials said tents and equipment have been set up at the cemetery by the department's crime scene unit to facilitate the exhumation.

The exhumation follows a court order by Dhaka's Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Mostafizur Rahman on August 4, acting on a police application filed by Sub-Inspector Mahidul Islam of Mohammadpur Police Station.

The court had ordered the authorities concerned to exhume 114 bodies of individuals killed during the July Uprising of 2024 in order to identify them.

During the anti-discrimination movement last year, 114 martyrs were buried as unrecognised individuals in the Rayerbazar cemetery in Mohammadpur.

"For the purpose of taking legal action in the future and identifying the bodies, it is necessary to exhume those through proper legal procedures, conduct post-mortem and collect DNA samples to confirm their identities," the police application said.

"Upon completion of legal proceedings and confirmation of identity through DNA profiling, it is also required to hand over the bodies to their respective families," it added.​

 

[Saif]

July killings: Anti-Discrimination Student Movement compiles list of OCs and SPs

The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement is compiling a list of the then officers-in-charge (OCs) of the police stations where students and civilians were killed during the July uprising. Alongside this, they are also listing the district superintendents of police (SPs) and higher-ranking...

en.prothomalo.com

July killings: Anti-Discrimination Student Movement compiles list of OCs and SPs

Correspondent Dhaka University
Published: 04 Jan 2026, 22: 24

The leaders of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement held a press conference at Dhaka University’s Madhur Canteen today, Sunday evening. Prothom Alo

The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement is compiling a list of the then officers-in-charge (OCs) of the police stations where students and civilians were killed during the July uprising.

Alongside this, they are also listing the district superintendents of police (SPs) and higher-ranking officials. Once the list is completed, cases will be filed against them at the International Criminal Court.

This was announced by Rifat Rashid, president of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, at a press conference held on Sunday evening at Dhaka University’s Madhur Canteen.

Rifat Rashid stated that for the July mass uprising, they are preparing a list of OCs, SPs, and senior commanding officers of the police stations under which students and civilians were martyred. The movement has decided to submit this list to the tribunal and pursue legal action against those responsible.


In July 2024, a movement led by the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement demanding quota reforms in government jobs faced severe repression by the then Awami League government. After a bloody struggle, the movement escalated into an uprising, which forced the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to India.

Following the uprising, the interim government restructured the International Crimes Tribunal to prosecute crimes against humanity committed during the Awami League’s authoritarian rule, including the July killings. In one case, Sheikh Hasina and her government’s Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan were sentenced to death. The former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun was sentenced to five years in prison.

At a press conference, Rifat Rashid, president of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, outlined three demands and two action programmes.
First demand: Their Habiganj leader Mahdi Hasan should be granted unconditional release, not just bail, and the OC of Shayestaganj police station must be withdrawn.

Second demand: All students, workers, and citizens who participated in the July uprising must be granted amnesty for activities conducted from 1 July to 8 August, with an ordinance issued within the next 24 hours.

Third demand: All officers, soldiers, and staff of the military, navy, air force, paramilitary, and civil administration who played a key role in the July revolution should be formally recognised, honoured, and provided legal protection. A permanent commission should be established to prevent harassment at work. Officers in the armed forces who were denied promotions due to fascist repression since 25 February 2009 should receive rapid promotions and be posted to sensitive positions.

During the press conference, when Rifat Rashid announced the two action programmes, he also mentioned the compilation of the list of OCs and SPs, saying:

"This is not a delay tactic. What our brother Hadi said—there will be no delay, there will be action, action!"

He added: “Our second programme is to ensure that the ordinance on indemnity is issued. The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement will immediately coordinate with the legal advisor and home advisor to pressure the President into implementing it. This work has already begun today.”

Regarding the recent bail for Mahdi Hasan, who was arrested for obstructing government work, Rifat Rashid clarified that Mahdi has not been unconditionally released; he was only granted bail in one case.

Therefore, their first demand has not been fully met, and the struggle must continue.

The press conference was attended by Hasib Al Islam, chief coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, along with other leaders and activists.​