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The mourning over the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family members on Friday, August 15, was muted on social media fifty years after the incident, as dedicated Awami League loyalists -- particularly television personalities, film-industry personas, and some party activists - remembered Mujib and his family.
In-person commemorations were scarce, as most Awami League leaders and activists are in hiding after Sheikh Hasina was ousted from what critics called a vicious 16-year dictatorship.
On this day in 1975, a group of mutinous army officers assassinated Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The massacre at his residence on Road 32, Dhanmondi, remains one of the most significant events in the nation's history.
Alongside Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, those killed included his wife Begum Fazilatunnesa Mujib; his three sons Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal, and 10-year-old Sheikh Russel; his daughters-in-law Sultana Kamal and Rozi Jamal; his only brother Sheikh Abu Naser; Colonel Jamil, who had rushed to save him after receiving a phone call; Special Branch officer Siddiqur Rahman; and army member Syed Mahbubul Haque.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's nephew, Sheikh Fazlul Huq Moni, who was a leader of the Awami Jubo League, his wife Arzoo Moni, and Mujib's brother-in-law Abdur Rab Serniabat were also killed, among others.
Only Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana, who were in Brussels, Belgium, at the time, survived.
For nearly 15 consecutive years, the Awami League marked August 15 with month-long programmes, including tributes at Mujib's portrait at Dhanmondi 32 and at his grave in Tungipara, Gopalganj.
Last year, a mass uprising toppled the Awami League's authoritarian rule. In the changed political context,
August 15 is no longer a public holiday, as it was scrapped in 2024.
On August 5 that year, during the uprising, the Dhanmondi 32 residence was set on fire and vandalised.
On Friday, police and local residents remained vigilant around Dhanmondi 32 to prevent Awami League activists from gathering there.
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