Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina now faces an extraordinary 49 legal cases, including 40 murder charges, following her exit from office amid extensive student protests.

The latest charge was filed on Friday, adding to the growing list of allegations against Hasina and her former cabinet members.

The most recent case involves the murder of Abdul Ahad Shaikat, a student from Dhaka Commerce College, who was reportedly killed during the anti-discrimination student movement.

Shaikat’s father, Nazrul Islam, filed the case at Savar Model Police Station. The complaint alleges that Shaikat was brutally beaten and shot on Mukti Road in Savar on August 5, shortly after participating in a protest against systemic injustices.

He was declared dead upon arrival at the hospital.

Officer-in-Charge Atiqur Rahman confirmed the case, which not only implicates Hasina but also 126 others, including notable figures such as former road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, former state minister for information Mohammad A Arafat, and former state minister for disaster management and relief Enamur Rahman.

The case alleges these officials ordered members of the Chhatra League, Jubo League, and Awami League to carry out the attack that led to Shaikat’s death.

This new case adds to several others filed recently against Hasina and her associates. On Thursday, five additional murder cases were registered, bringing the total number of cases against the former Prime Minister to 49.

These cases include charges of crimes against humanity, genocide, abduction, and an attack on a Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) procession.

The accusations against Sheikh Hasina span several regions, with cases filed in Dhaka, Narsingdi, and Bogura. For instance, a street hawker was killed during protests in Ashulia on August 4, resulting in a murder charge against Hasina and 46 others.

In another case, Hasina and 32 others face allegations related to the death of a 12th-grade student in Dhaka’s Airport area on August 5.

Additional charges include the killing of a 23-year-old in Mohammadpur, Dhaka, on July 19, and the death of a businessman during the anti-discrimination student movement in Narsingdi on the same day.

In Bogura, Hasina, along with her sister Sheikh Rehana, son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, daughter Saima Wazed Putul, and 76 others, have been sued for the abduction and murder of a BNP leader in Shibganj upazila in 2018.

Sheikh Hasina, aged 76, was compelled to resign on August 5 following unprecedented student-led protests against her government over a contentious quota system in public sector jobs.

The protests, which began in early July, swiftly escalated into widespread anti-government demonstrations, leading to her government’s downfall.

After her resignation, Hasina fled to India, and an interim government led by 84-year-old Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was established to restore order.

The violent aftermath of her departure has been severe, with over 230 people killed in incidents of violence across the country, pushing the total death toll from the protests to more than 600.

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