"After a few days, even bricks will not be found"

  • Ruhul Amin, Staff Correspondent, Barta24.com,Dhaka
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photo: Barta24

photo: Barta24

With one word of Obaidul Quader, the country has fled, the country has been set on fire, and all the loot has been taken away. After a few days, I won't be able to find even a brick'—the middle-aged (pseudonym) Saifuddin was saying these words with a lot of anger.

He was saying the words after seeing the door of the central office of Awami League on Bangabandhu Avenue in Gulistan being removed. Before that, someone should hang three banners saying 'Celebrity Wedding' at the entrance of the office. When contacted by Celebrity Wedding about the matter, the company's founder, Johnny, denied it to Barta24.com. He said, on August 5, we hung about 15 such banners in front of the National Press Club. Later, someone may have taken it from there and hung it in front of the office.

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Basically, people were gathering in front of the office to see the hung banners. Various jokes were also made about such helpless surrender of the powerful government and former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's escape from the country. Some people were making oblique comments saying that they had to face problems even walking on the Bangabandhu Avenue road.


While walking in front of the office another person named Billal Hossain came forward after seeing the eager crowd and banners. After looking at the banners for a while and looking around the office, he joined the others in the conversation; Billal said, "Ah, how many games are you playing, now Allah's Mair." The whole thing was not burnt but all the goods were taken. Even Ershad did not kill so many people; he was giving up power only after two people died. No one has done this except Allah.

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Not only Saifuddin and Billal, almost everyone was looking at the building while walking along this road, some were going near it with curiosity, reading the words written on the banner. Someone took out the phone again; remembering memories by taking pictures. But on everyone's face is a mixed reaction of surprise, disappointment and anger.

Such a picture was seen in front of the central office of Awami League on Saturday (September 7) at noon. However, the looting has not stopped so far. Even after the fire on August 5 and the looting of all the goods in the building, the looting did not stop. A looter was also seen today. He was taking the door of the building in a van.

When asked if he saw any of the Awami League leaders coming to a fruit seller in front of the office, the fruit seller told Barta24.com on  condition of anonymity that he has not seen anyone here since the 5th. Now thieves and looters are taking everything. There is no one to see. But he who builds this building knows how hard he is building it.

On this day, the road in front of the office can be seen turning into a parking place for hawkers and various cars. The abandoned state of the building in the absence of the once proud leaders and various government law enforcement agencies. Ashes burnt due to setting fire are also in the same place. The ground floor is strewn with ashes and broken glass.


Several private cars were parked right in front of the office. Since then, the hawkers are occupying the road by laying rows of posts up to the road in front of Maulana Bhasani National Hockey Stadium. Various mobile hawkers have also arranged their stalls. But no one has anything to say. There is no law enforcement presence. People are walking, going to their destination, glancing at the building standing in ruins on the way.

Incidentally, the former Prime Minister and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina fled to India after resigning in the face of the student movement on August 5. When the news spread, the anger of the students erupted in various structures of Awami League. The level of anger was so intense that the central office of the party, the president's office, the Bangabandhu Museum and the Ganobhaban were also vandalized. Along with that, miscreants looted various goods and set them on fire.

Since then, no central leader of the party has been seen in public. While fleeing the country, many ministers and MPs have been detained by the law and order forces in jail. Some of the rest managed to escape from the country but are still not coming publicly. Those who could not escape are hiding inside the country. The fear of being arrested in the case of almost thousands of deaths and hundreds of thousands of people injured in the movement is not leaving the leaders behind.