After a long, feverish, and blood-soaked July, the nation did not rest. Instead, the flames burned higher.
The massacre that began on July 16 did not end in a single night; it bled into the days that followed, staining every street yet silencing none. What began as brutality turned into awakening- a nation unyielding, roaring in defiance, and unwilling to forget.
In July's inferno, August was just another day
The people, drenched in mourning and rage, declared that July would not come to an end. Not until every demand was met. Not until justice was served. With the slogan "July cholbei," they shattered the calendar; August 1 was renamed July 32, and it continued until August 5 as July 36, when the overthrown prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country, making the student-people uprising a success.
July had not ended. It is July 32 today- it spread like wildfire, a defiant anthem reverberating through the nation.
Six student leaders released from DB custody
Around 1.30pm, six leaders of the anti-discrimination student movement- Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud, Abu Baker Mojumder, Hasnat Abdullah, Sarjis Alam, and Nusrat Tabassum were freed from the custody of the Detective Branch (DB) of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police. They left the DB office aboard a government vehicle.
Their arrests, which took place between July 26 and 28, had sparked widespread student protests and drawn sharp criticism from civil society.
A sit-in protest outside the DB office was organised by notable figures such as Professor Asif Nazrul and environmentalist Syeda Rizwana Hasan, calling for their immediate release.
According to Nahid Islam's father, Badarul Islam, the families of all six detainees were contacted by phone that morning and asked to come to the DB office, where the coordinators were then released and transported home by DB officials.
He also revealed that the six coordinators had been on a hunger strike for the final two days of their detention.
Upon release, coordinator Sarjis Alam posted a message that came to symbolise the movement's resilience.
"You can detain six people for six days in the DB custody, but how will you detain the entire young generation of Bangladesh?"
Protest surged with 'remembering our heroes'
Anti-Discrimination Student Movement (ADSM) launched its pre-announced "Remembering Our Heroes" programme to honour those killed and injured during the quota reform protests through memorial meetings, graffiti, wall writings, and festoons with the participation of general people across the country.
The campaign also urged people to use hashtags like #JulyMassacre and #RememberingOurHeroes on their social handles, and demanded a UN-led investigation into the atrocities.
On August 1, movement leaders announced nationwide prayers and mass rallies for August 2 to remember the victims, including those killed, injured, disabled, and arrested during the protests.
On the evening of August 1, movement coordinator Abdul Kader issued a statement outlining the programme.
"We are calling upon the people from all walks of life across the country to offer special prayers at all mosques after Jumu'ah and in other places of worship at a suitable time and visit the graves of the martyrs tomorrow," read the statement.
The rallies would also protest the massacres and mass arrests and support their nine-point demands.
However, law enforcement obstructed protesters during the programme of "Remembering our heroes" in several areas, leading to clashes, while several students were reportedly detained.
Govt bans Jamaat, BNP calls it a diversion
That same day, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a gazette officially banning Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir, under Section 18(1) of the Anti-Terrorism Act.
The decision marked the formal outlawing of a party long accused of opposing the country's liberation and being linked to extremist activities.
In response, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir strongly condemned the ban, describing it as "deplorable, undemocratic, and unconstitutional," and accusing the ruling Awami League of using it as a distraction to shift blame and fuel further unrest.
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