Army dismisses Hasnat’s post as “laughable and immature”

The Bangladesh Army on Sunday denied allegations by a prominent organiser of a newly formed political party that he was pressured by senior military officials to accept a so-called “refined” faction of the Awami League, the party ousted from power last August following a popular uprising.

In a statement shared with Netra News, the army headquarters acknowledged that its chief, General Waqar-uz-Zaman, met Hasnat Abdullah on March 11th in Dhaka Cantonment. However, the Army described Abdullah’s assertions as “extremely laughable and an immature array of stories.”

The meeting wasn’t “a matter of summoning them and proposing or pressuring them about the rehabilitation of the Awami League,” the statement said. Instead, it insisted, the meeting occurred at the request of Abdullah and another co-ordinator of his party, Sarjis Alam, who had long sought a “courtesy meeting” with Waqar-uz-Zaman.

Abdullah, 27, is a former student activist who helped lead the Students Against Discrimination movement. That organisation emerged after protests against a court order reinstating a quota system for government jobs.

These demonstrations eventually contributed to the downfall of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5th. A handful of student leaders from the movement have served in the subsequent interim cabinet. Among them, Nahid Islam later resigned to establish the National Citizen Party, appointing Abdullah and Alam as regional chief organisers.

Explosive claims

In a Facebook post on Friday, Abdullah claimed that he had been presented with an “Indian plan” to rehabilitate the Awami League. He alleged that a “refined” version of the party, led by former minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury, former Parliament Speaker Shirin Sharmin, and Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh — a relative of Hasina and a former mayor of Dhaka — would publicly renounce Hasina’s legacy and pledge to restore the ideals of “Bangabandhu’s Awami League.” In exchange, he wrote, politicians who endorsed this new faction would receive parliamentary seats and other concessions.

The post went viral in Bangladesh, amassing nearly nine hundred thousand reactions, comments, and shares, with many praising the young activist for publicly challenging the military, which still invokes considerable fear, even after the fall of Hasina’s authoritarian regime.

Speaking at a party press conference on Friday night, Abdullah and his party colleagues doubled down on their claims. But he refused to confirm whether the March 11th meeting he referred to involved Waqar-uz-Zaman. 

“I have mentioned ‘cantonment’ there (in the Facebook post); you can talk to them,” he said, declining to give a “binary” yes-or-no answer when pressed by a Netra News reporter. He also claimed they had been “invited to talk” about issues of magistracy power and law and order.

The Army’s statement contradicts much of Abdullah’s version of events, saying that Abdullah and Alam had “for a long time” sought a courtesy call with the general. 

On March 11th, the Army said, “Sarjis Alam phoned the Military Adviser to the Army Chief to arrange the meeting, and was asked to come to army headquarters.” Instead, the pair was said to have waited at Sena Bhaban, where the general met them after finishing his official duties.

It remains unclear whether Abdullah and Alam had the consent of the National Citizen Party to request the meeting or acted on their own. Another party leader, Nasiruddin Patwari, publicly criticised Abdullah’s Facebook post at an iftar gathering in Sylhet on Saturday, stating it was “lacking courtesy.”

Netra News was unable to verify what was discussed during the meeting, although a senior army officer said the initiative originated with Abdullah and Alam. Both men, as well as Patwari, have since maintained that they do not harbour any animosity towards the Army or its leadership.

Neither the pair nor Nahid Islam responded to Netra News’ requests for comments.

The Awami League’s rehabilitation

In its statement, the army headquarters acknowledged that the topic of the Awami League rehabilitation arose, but said Waqar-uz-Zaman merely offered his personal opinion: that “if Awami League leaders without criminal cases or questionable reputations formed a new version of the Awami League and contested the forthcoming election, it would likely result in a more credible, competitive and fruitful outcome, and might bolster international acceptance.”

Nearly a year after the protest that forced Hasina to flee to India following 15 and a half years of iron-fisted rule, even the possibility of her or her exiled allies returning to Bangladesh — without facing accountability for the atrocities they oversaw, which the United Nations has described as potential crimes against humanity — continues to stir strong emotions across the country.

Abdullah wrote on social media that in the meeting, he asked how one could “forgive a party that still has not apologised,” only to be told: “You people know nothing. You lack wisdom and experience. We have been in this service for at least 40 years… Besides, there will be no ‘inclusive’ election without the Awami League.”

The army statement said the chief had offered his opinion that Awami League leaders not facing criminal charges should be included in the political process, noting that he regarded the young activists “like his sons.”

“In reality, this is by no means a matter of summoning them and proposing or pressuring them about the rehabilitation of the Awami League,” the statement said.

Waqar-uz-Zaman became a focus of national attention after Hasina was toppled. He was involved in negotiations with various political actors that eventually led to an interim government under Muhammad Yunus. 

Bangladesh’s army has historically played a pivotal role in the country’s political upheavals and continues to wield considerable sway in public life. The general himself has issued warnings about how protracted mudslinging among different factions could “threaten Bangladesh’s stability and sovereignty.” 

But the soft-spoken general has repeatedly denied any desire for direct military intervention, even as speculation continues about the armed forces’ influence on civilian politics.

Nevertheless, unease remains. 

For many in the country’s political sphere, the question of how far the army is willing to extend its reach — even after Hasina’s departure — refuses to go away.●

(Staff correspondent Miraz Hossain contributed to this report.)