Today Sunday (July 16) is the imprisonment day of Bangabandhu’s daughter, Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. In 2007, the then former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was arrested on July 16 that year in a case of falsehood and conspiracy during the caretaker government after One Eleven.
Earlier that day, nearly two thousand members of the law and order forces surrounded Sheikh Hasina’s residence in Dhanmondi, Sudha Sadan. At around 7:30 am, members of the joint forces arrested Sheikh Hasina and took her from Sudha Sadan to the CMM court in Dhaka. Courts are usually assembled about two hours before the scheduled start time of court proceedings. When Awami League president Sheikh Hasina was brought to court, her bail application was informed.But the Metropolitan Magistrate ordered to send Sheikh Hasina to jail without granting bail.
On that day, Sheikh Hasina was taken directly from the CMM court to a government house adjacent to the speaker’s house on the Jatiya Sangsad Bhavan grounds. Declaring that house a sub-jail, Sheikh Hasina was kept there for about 11 months. After that, the farce continued in the name of trial of some cases as part of the conspiracy to remove Sheikh Hasina from politics.
By arresting Sheikh Hasina, the then undemocratic and unelected caretaker government tried to block the democratic rights of the people of Bengal. After her arrest, Sheikh Hasina stood at the gate of the court and protested against the conspiracy of the then caretaker government through a speech of about 36 minutes.
Before the arrest, Awami League President Sheikh Hasina through an open letter to the countrymen urged the people of the country and Awami League leaders and activists to stand up against injustice without losing morale to protect democracy.
After that, the movement gradually developed. When people from all walks of life, including Awami League leaders, became agitators, the caretaker government faced resistance. In view of the continuous resistance movement of Awami League and its affiliates and democracy-seeking countrymen, Sheikh Hasina’s uncompromising and firm attitude and the stubborn demands of the countrymen, on June 11, 2008, the caretaker government was forced to release her after 11 months of imprisonment. With the release of Bangabandhu’s daughter Sheikh Hasina, the democratic rights of the people of this country returned again. Awami League came to power with a huge victory in the 2008 elections. Democracy and development developed simultaneously. Sheikh Hasina is serving as the Prime Minister for the fourth time including three consecutive terms.
