Sharif Osman Hadi, leader of the radical group Inquilab Mancha, has died after being shot by unidentified assailants in Dhaka on 12 December 2025. He later succumbed to his injuries in Singapore.
Police said three assailants on a motorcycle shot Hadi in central Dhaka’s Bijoynagar area as he began his election campaign as an independent candidate.
“Osman Hadi was shot at 2:25 p.m. in front of DR Tower on Box Culvert Road at Bijoynagar. We have initially learned that three assailants on a motorcycle shot him and fled the scene,” a Dhaka police spokesman told PTI.
Hadi was first taken to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, where he was placed on life support. The interim government later announced that he would be airlifted to Singapore for treatment. He died there on Thursday.
Following his death, Bangladesh interim government Chief Adviser Prof. Mohammed Yunus said that “no leniency will be shown” to the perpetrators. He announced a day of mourning on 20 December 2025 and directed that the national flag be flown at half-mast at government, semi-government and autonomous offices, educational institutions, government and private buildings, and Bangladesh missions abroad.
Prof. Yunus described Hadi as an “enemy of the defeated forces and fascist terrorists,” an apparent reference to the now-disbanded Awami League. He also urged citizens to avoid “propaganda and rumours” and cautioned against rash actions.
Hadi had emerged as a key figure in the July–August 2024 uprising that led to the ouster of Sheikh Hasina. He was an outspoken critic of India and a frontline participant in the movement. Over the past year, Inquilab Mancha had become a politically influential group campaigning against Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League. The interim government disbanded the party in May 2025, disqualifying it from contesting the upcoming elections. According to PTI, the group also called for the arrest of “all terrorists” of the disbanded party and for the security of the “July warriors.”
The attack has affected diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and India. On 14 December, Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry summoned Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma to express “serious concern” over what it described as “incendiary statements” by Sheikh Hasina, currently in India. The Ministry requested India’s cooperation to prevent the suspects from fleeing to Indian territory and to ensure their return to Bangladesh if they entered.
Inquilab Mancha said it would stage a sit-in at Shahbagh intersection until the attackers were arrested. Anti-India slogans were raised during Thursday’s protests. Political offshoots, including the National Citizen Party, alleged that the assailants had fled to India and called on the interim government to keep the Indian High Commission closed until they were returned. Sarjis Alm, a key leader of the NCP, said: “The interim government, until India returns assassins of Hadi Bhai, the Indian High Commission to Bangladesh will remain closed. Now or Never. We are in a war!”
(With inputs from The Hindu)
