Bangladesh mob beats suspected supporters of ex-PM Hasina

DHAKA: A mob wielding bamboo rods and plastic pipes beat several suspected supporters of Sheikh Hasina on Thursday, vowing to quash a rumoured rally for the ousted Bangladesh premier outside her childhood home.

Hasina, 76, fled by helicopter last week to neighbouring India as student-led protests flooded Dhaka’s streets in a dramatic end to her iron-fisted 15-year rule.

Thursday is the anniversary of the 1975 assassination of her father, independence hero Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, during a military coup — a date her government had declared a national holiday.

Previous years saw huge rallies around Bangladesh to mark the occasion, but those glad to see Hasina toppled were eager to ensure supporters of her Awami League party did not have a chance to regroup.

“Fugitive and dictator Sheikh Hasina has ordered her goons and militia forces to come to the site so they can produce a counter-revolution,” Imraul Hasan Kayes, 26, told.