Dhaka: The Bangladesh Police concluded on Tuesday that the killing of prominent student leader and activist Sharif Osman Hadi was an act of "political vendetta" orchestrated by members of the now-banned Awami League. Submitting a chargesheet against 17 individuals, investigators stated that the murder was retaliation for Hadi’s vocal opposition to the former Sheikh Hasina-led government.
The Detective Branch (DB) of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police identified Taijul Islam Chowdhury Bappi, an organising secretary of the Jubo League’s Dhaka North unit, as the mastermind behind the assassination. According to Additional Police Commissioner Shafiqul Islam, the conspiracy was hatched to silence Hadi, whose outspoken criticism of the Awami League and its student wing, the Chhatra League, had angered party loyalists. The police identified the shooter as Faisal Karim Masud, a former Chhatra League leader, who allegedly carried out the attack with logistical support from other party functionaries.
Hadi, a spokesperson for the activist group ‘Inquilab Moncho’ and an aspiring independent parliamentary candidate for the Dhaka-8 constituency, was shot in the head on December 12, 2025, in Dhaka’s Paltan area. Assailants on a motorcycle opened fire while he was returning from an election campaign event. He was airlifted to Singapore for advanced treatment but succumbed to his injuries on December 18. His death had triggered widespread unrest and arson attacks across Bangladesh, further destabilising the volatile political landscape following Sheikh Hasina's ouster in August 2024.
However, the police's findings have met with immediate rejection from Hadi's associates. ‘Inquilab Moncho’ dismissed the chargesheet, alleging that it shields the true "state machinery" behind the killing. Abdullah Al Jaber, the group's member secretary, termed the police narrative, that a local ward councillor alone ordered the hit, as implausible. The group has vowed to continue their agitation, claiming the murder involved a wider network of powerful figures who remain untouched by the current investigation.