Mujibur's iconic house reduced to ruins in mob violence; Dhaka blames Hasina's speech

A massive mob, consisting mostly of students and youth activists, demolished the historic home of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of Bangladesh, in the heart of Dhaka on Thursday, and the arson and vandalism continued for hours without any effort by authorities to stop it.

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The demolition followed a protest titled "Bulldozer March", organised on Wednesday through messages posted on social media platforms such as Facebook. The building, 32 Dhanmondi, where Rahman was assassinated with his wife, his brother, three sons, two daughters-in-law and other relatives on August 15, 1975, was first set on fire on Wednesday night before being pulled down by Thursday morning.

Dhaka-based diplomats and other people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said such a massive protest couldn't have gone ahead without the tacit consent of authorities.

The interim government sought to blame Rahman's daughter, former premier Sheikh Hasina, who is in self-exile in India, for the demolition, saying in a statement that people were offended by a "provocative speech" she delivered online on Wednesday night at 8.22pm (Bangladesh time). Though the time of her address was advertised, and could have led to tensions mounting, several media reports in Bangladesh said the vandalism of Rahman's home started before Hasina began the speech, which was beamed on her Awami League party's social media channels.