Bangladesh president Mohammed Shahabuddin resigned Friday afternoon, ending widespread speculation. He submitted his resignation letter to the speaker of the national parliament at 4:30 p.m., and authorities scheduled an emergency press conference for 5 p.m. in the parliament oath room.
Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke warned Prime Minister Narendra Modi that protesters could begin demanding his resignation unless education minister Dharmendra Pradhan steps down over alleged examination failures.
Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke said protesters would continue their demonstrations until India’s education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, resigns over the government’s handling of student grievances.
Thousands of protesters remained camped at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Thursday, defying restrictions after police used tear gas and batons to disperse demonstrators twice this week.
President Mohammed Shahabuddin may resign soon as discussions surrounding his departure intensify, according to media reports citing government and political sources.
Bangladesh’s government has set a one-year goal to reduce a 4.5 million-case court backlog to between 2 million and 2.5 million through mediation, arbitration and out-of-court negotiations.
Authorities have arrested retired major Mozaffar Hossain, a fugitive accused in the assassination of former president Ziaur Rahman, and transferred him to military custody for trial by general court-martial, home minister Salahuddin Ahmed said.
A former student protest leader and member of parliament Nahid Islam warned that former prime minister Sheikh Hasina would face execution if she returned to Bangladesh, delivering a fiery speech tied to the student-led uprising that forced her from office.
The Shapla Chattar killings refer to a deadly security operation carried out in Dhaka on the night of May 5 and the early hours of May 6, 2013, when police and other security forces dispersed thousands of supporters of Hefazat-e-Islam from the capital’s commercial district.
The International Crimes Tribunal’s investigation agency has submitted a draft report alleging that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was the principal accused in the May 5, 2013, Shapla Chattar killings, with prosecutors saying they plan to file formal charges Tuesday to begin trial proceedings.
