The leaked audio recording has shown that former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ordered security forces to firing on student protesters last year, resulting in at least 1,400 people. This unrest was steeped by mass demonstrations led by students against the controversial quota system in government jobs, which many people claimed that this system discriminated against meritorious candidates. The BBC has confirmed the authenticity of the audio in which Hasina is heard directing a senior government official to use fatal force.
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He was reportedly said during a phone call from his official residence, Ganbhavan on the evening of July 18, 2024, to use any weapon when needed. Wherever you meet, shoot. Within a few hours, troops of paramilitary forces were deployed in Dhaka and fired bullets on the crowd with military-grade rifles. Police documents received by the BBC confirm the use of fighter weapons in five university areas and surrounding districts.
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How did the protests begin?
These protests erupted after the Hasina government passed a law to expand the controversial quota system in public sector jobs. The students accused the Awami League of institutionalizing the discrimination against the merit-based candidates in favor of political loyalists and select social groups. Although similar protests took place in 2018, their scale was unprecedented in 2024, which attracted students, academics and civil rights activists across the country. The government’s violent response further increased unrest. According to the United Nations Human Rights Office, more than 1,400 people were killed and thousands of people were detained during repression between July and August 2024. Many international rights groups have since demanded an independent inquiry into violence.