Govt assures Shakib’s safety amid protest threats

Bangladesh star cricketer Shakib Al Hasan is set to return home to play his final Test match in Mirpur, starting October 21, amid growing protests against him.

However, concerns about his safety linger for this connection with the previous government which was ousted by an unprecedented student-citizen movement in August.

Recently, a group of student protesters displayed graffiti expressing anger toward Shakib for his actions during the protests in July and August, during which, according to protesters, more than 1,500 people were killed.

They also conducted wall-writing expressing anger to Shakib at the cricket stadium area in Mirpur.

The protesters said they do not want Shakib to wear Bangladesh’s jersey again, citing his association with the “fascist government”—a reference to the previous administration led by Sheikh Hasina.

On Sunday, Sports Adviser Asif Mahmud said he sees no obstacles to Shakib’s return or his participation in the Test match.

“He is a cricketer, he will play, and he is a citizen of Bangladesh. I don’t see any obstacle to his homecoming. The responsibility of the state is to ensure the safety of every citizen, including the cricket team. We will ensure that,” said Asif Mahmud while speaking to the media on Sunday.

His comments came as protesting students in Mirpur burned jerseys of both Shakib and former Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza. Both were members of parliament under Sheikh Hasina’s government.

Asif Mahmud described this anger as an “expression of emotion.”

“We are here after a big movement,” Asif Mahmud said, adding, “Shakib was a member of the fascist regime. He has explained his position on social media. But there is still some emotion involved.”

In a recent social media post, Shakib apologised for his silence during the movement and clarified that he participated in the election “for the progress of his hometown Magura” and was an MP only for a “brief period.”

Facing the protests, Sheikh Hasina fled the country on August 5. Since then, dozens of murder cases have been filed against her and against many other members of her party, Awami League, including Shakib.

However, the sports adviser said if Shakib is not involved, his name will be removed from the case files.