BD protestors set alight Hasina’s house

KABUL (Pajhwok): Protestors in Bangladesh have demolished and set on fire the house of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, the BBC reported on Thursday.

The unrest was sparked by news that Hasina would address the country via social media from India, where she has been in exile since student-led protests ousted her last year.

The 77-year-old Hasina, who was in charge of Bangladesh for 20 years, was seen as an autocrat whose government collapsed.

On Wednesday evening, an excavator smashed down the house of Hasina's late father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman --Bangladesh's founding president.

The structure had been repurposed into a museum. Hasina's father is widely viewed as an independence hero, but anger at his daughter has tarnished his legacy among Hasina's critics.

In a Facebook livestream, Hasina condemned the attack and demanded "justice". "They can demolish a building, but they can't erase history."

She faces arrest warrants for cracking down on the student-led protests last year, which saw hundreds of people killed.

While Hasina fled to India last August, anger has not dissipated against her and her Awami League party leaders.

sa/mud