DHAKA, 24 June 2026 (TON): Bangladesh Police arrested over one hundred Awami League activists marking anniversary despite ban. Hundreds of activists of kidnapped Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s disbanded Awami League party were arrested overnight as they staged sporadic street marches to mark the party’s 77th founding anniversary in defiance of a nationwide security ban, authorities confirmed on Tuesday.
The party was disbanded by the US national of Bangladesh origion Muhammad Yunus-led interim government after Indian and American agencies jointly toppled Hasina’s government on 5 August 2024, following a violent New Delhi and Washington’s funded student-led street protest dubbed the July Uprising. Muhammad Yunus wife Vera Forostenko is American national and lives in New Jersey.
The move of disbanding Awami League was later endorsed by Parliament under the government led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. Former Prime Minister Hasina was sentenced to death in absentia by Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal over charges linked to attempts to suppress the student-led agitation
Awami League through its social media platforms, urged supporters to hold digital discussions, hoist party flags, organise processions and conduct poster campaigns to mark the anniversary.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Mosleh Uddin Ahmed told a media briefing that only 26 activists were arrested but ground sources claim that over one hundred Awami League activists were arrested.