Did the Yunus-led government 'exterminate' Gopalganj citizens for opposing the NCP?

Dhaka, July 19 (NationPress) The Awami League of Bangladesh has issued a strong denunciation of what it describes as a “brutal and deadly crackdown” on unarmed civilians in the Gopalganj district. The party has held the Yunus-led administration accountable, claiming it sanctioned state forces to “exterminate” citizens who did not align with activists from the Yunus-supported National Citizens Party (NCP).

Reports from local media indicate that a curfew was declared on Wednesday, following violent confrontations between protestors and law enforcement.

This harsh response to the demonstrators allegedly resulted in four fatalities and over 50 injuries, as thousands gathered in Gopalganj on Wednesday to protest against the “state-sponsored repression” imposed by the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus.

On Friday, Gopalganj Deputy Commissioner (DC) Muhammad Kamruzzaman confirmed that the curfew would be enforced until Saturday morning.

“We strongly condemn the actions taken by the Bangladesh armed forces and law enforcement, who, under the cover of a curfew and blanket impunity, have been conducting deadly crackdowns on unarmed citizens in Gopalganj. This marks yet another gross misuse of state machinery to intimidate and silence public dissent against Yunus’s divisive approach, mob rule, and attempts to dismantle the foundational principles of our nation, including secularism and pluralism,” the Awami League stated.

“We assert that the Yunus regime’s authorization led to the extermination of citizens in Gopalganj merely for rejecting the activists of the National Citizens Party. Law enforcement has been conducting raids, torturing, and arbitrary arrests of hundreds of unarmed individuals from their homes overnight, grossly violating human rights,” the statement continued.

The Awami League pointed out that even after 48 hours, no senior official from the Yunus-led interim government has provided assistance to the victims’ families, who have been denied the opportunity to file cases regarding the extrajudicial killings carried out by security forces. This serves as a clear indication of the regime's blatant abuse of state mechanisms to deny justice and cover up the use of lethal force against citizens during a spontaneous uprising against the government.

The party criticized attempts by “the press wing on behalf of the chief advisor” to shift blame onto the families of victims who were fatally shot by law enforcement, particularly concerning their burials without autopsies.

The Awami League has called upon the international community to heed the testimonies of victims’ family members and witnesses, which are available on social media and in mainstream outlets. These accounts reveal that “hospital authorities and police have denied families their rights to conduct autopsies, and government officials have refused to issue death certificates for those killed by law enforcement bullets.”

“Following the massacre, the chief advisor praised law enforcement for these horrific human rights violations and subtly endorsed a police directive to target anyone associated with the Awami League. Such actions equate to a mock trial process, empowering the perpetrators with impunity,” the party asserted.

The Awami League further emphasized that “the populace is living in fear of law enforcement, as the regime has transformed the security apparatus into a tool against dissenters, emboldened by total lack of accountability and a concerning global silence.”