Days after Bangladeshi anti-India and Jihadi activist Sharif Osman Hadi died from a gunshot wound, his brother has made explosive allegations against the country’s interim government led by Muhammad Yunus. Speaking at a protest gathering in Shahbagh, Dhaka, Sharif Omar Hadi accused a section within the interim administration of being behind his brother’s assassination, claiming it was done to disrupt the country’s upcoming national elections.
Addressing protesters, Omar directly blamed the government, saying it was using his brother’s killing as a political tool. “You had Osman Hadi killed, and now you are trying to derail the election by turning this into an issue,” he said, claiming a deep conspiracy within the state machinery. His remarks marked a sharp shift from earlier claims made by the family and protest groups, which had largely targeted India.
‘Ensure justice, don’t sabotage the election,’ brother warns government
Sharif Omar Hadi said his brother strongly wanted national elections to be held by February and believed democracy should return to Bangladesh without further delay. He demanded a fast-tracked trial of those responsible for the killing, warning that prolonged unrest would harm the election environment.
“Ensure a speedy trial so the election atmosphere is not destroyed,” Omar said. He accused the interim government of failing to show any real progress in the investigation. Drawing a sharp comparison, he warned that those in power could face the same fate as former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India after mass protests last year forced her out of office.
Wasn’t Hadi killed by the Awami League? Then why is Hadi’s brother now saying that Yunus’s government killed Hadi to delay the election? Based solely on propaganda spread by @ZulkarnainSaer , so many @albd1971 activists were arrested, and their homes and business establishments… pic.twitter.com/wImPimtw2P
— Redowan Ibne Saiful (@Redowanshakil) December 23, 2025
“If justice is not delivered, you too may one day be forced to leave Bangladesh,” he said, in a direct warning to the Yunus administration.
Omar also claimed that his brother was killed because he refused to bow to any intelligence agency or “foreign masters,” without naming specific groups.
Hadi’s sister’s remarks spark anti-India protests
Before Omar accused the interim government, the protests had taken a sharply anti-India turn following remarks made by Hadi’s sister. In a video that went viral on social media, she openly called for jihad-style training in every household to “fight India,” including training for children.
“We should give jihadi training to everyone, irrespective of gender or age, even children, to fight India,” she said. Comparing her brother to Indian freedom fighters, she declared Hadi a revolutionary leader and issued a direct threat against India, saying, “We Bangladeshis will not rest until Indian dogs are completely wiped out. This war began 200 years ago.”
"We Bangladeshis will not rest until Indian dogs are completely wiped out. This war began 200 years ago"
– Osman Hadi's sister pic.twitter.com/m0fOAFeuoC
— Kreately.in (@KreatelyMedia) December 21, 2025
Her remarks triggered a wave of anti-India protests across Bangladesh. Bangladeshis accused India of being responsible for Hadi’s killing, even though no evidence was presented. Some protest groups claimed the attackers fled to India and were being sheltered there, allegations that have not been independently verified.
Political groups claim ‘deep conspiracy’
Members of Inquilab Mancha have continued to push the narrative of a larger conspiracy behind Hadi’s killing. According to a report by The Daily Star, the platform’s member secretary, Abdullah Al Jaber, alleged that the murder was part of a coordinated attempt to destroy the gains of the July uprising and weaken Bangladesh’s sovereignty.
Jaber claimed that international intelligence agencies and what he described as “fascist forces” operating inside Bangladesh were involved. He demanded that the government publicly present the killers following an international-standard investigation within a fixed deadline, warning that protests would intensify if their demands were ignored.
Protesters have vowed to stay on the streets until justice is delivered. Inquilab Mancha leaders also announced they would not hold any programmes on 25th December, the day BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman is expected to return to Bangladesh. They said they hope Rahman will openly support their demand for justice.
As anger grows and narratives shift, Sharif Osman Hadi’s killing has now become a flashpoint, first fuelling anti-India sentiment, and now turning into a direct challenge to the Yunus-led interim government ahead of a crucial election year.
Who was Sharif Osman Hadi?
Sharif Osman Bin Hadi was a radical anti-India leader and the spokesperson of Inquilab Mancha, a political-cultural platform that emerged from the 2024 July uprising that led to the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government. He had recently announced plans to contest the Dhaka-8 constituency in the next general elections, expected in February 2026.
Hadi was shot on 12th December while travelling in a battery-powered auto-rickshaw in Dhaka. He suffered severe brain injuries and was first admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Due to his critical condition, he was airlifted to Singapore on 15th December, where he later died during treatment on 18th December.
His death triggered widespread and violent anti-India protests across Bangladesh, with mobs attacking newspaper offices and cultural institutions in several cities.
