After the fall of the former government many police officers abandoned their posts260 and went into hiding.261 They left behind a vacuum in law enforcement which opened up for a spike in crime.262 In the immediate aftermath, young citizens could be seen redirecting traffic in Dhaka, in the absence of traffic police.263 Netra News described the situation as a ‘near collapse’ of law enforcement.264 The military was granted magistracy powers to maintain law and order,265 which allows military officers holding the rank of captain or higher to, inter alia, arrest people.266
Many police officers were attacked in the aftermath of the former government’s fall, as the institution was perceived as having aided the former government in enforcing a repressive agenda267 and making use of excessive force during protests.268 Police stations were set on fire and police officers were beaten to death by mobs.269 According to TIB, 44 police were killed in various incidents during protests and in the early days after the former government’s fall.270 After the former government fell, 30 % of police positions became vacant, and 450 out of 639 police stations were nonfunctional following attacks.271
The police have gradually returned to duty, and the immediate public unrest that followed the fall of the former government has stabilised.272 However, public trust in the police deteriorated further during the protests,273 and Dr. Tawohidul Haque, associate professor and crime analyst at the Institute of Social Welfare and Research, University of Dhaka, described an existing sentiment of perceiving the police as ‘enemies of the people’ due to their violent repression during protests, which has made ‘officers hesitant to perform their duties’.274 Local media also reported on police officers being hesitant in interfering in incidents involving political or religious groups, or student bodies, ‘fearing repercussions if the political winds shift after a change in government.’275 Local media also reported on continuing attacks against the police,276 including beatings of police officers apprehended alone.277 According to the Daily Star, 225 officers were assaulted in the period September 2024–February 2025.278
The interim government dismissed the national police chief,279 and there were also reshuffles and dismissals of other senior law enforcement staff.280 According to the Diplomat, many officers who had been sidelined for years under the former government were transferred to key positions. These officers have, however, been facing resistance from lower-ranking officers loyal to the former government.281 Police morale was reportedly poor,282 including due to a perceived inaction of the interim government to address police killings.283 As described by the United Nations Development Programme (UNPD) in November 2024, police were often ‘trapped in a cycle of violence and mistrust, operating in a high-pressure environment with insufficient resources, inadequate training, and excessive work hours – factors that have a detrimental impact on the overall effectiveness and morale of the force’.284 The capacity of the police has reportedly also been hampered by the loss of informants.285 According to Najmus Sakib, criminology assistant professor at Dhaka University, cited by Al Jazeera, new officers were not familiar with assigned areas and lacked a comprehensive crime-fighting strategy.286
- 260
VOA, Deadly mob violence underscores Bangladesh's security breakdown, 21 September 2024, url
- 261
HRW, After the Monsoon Revolution, 27 January 2025, url
- 262
HRW, After the Monsoon Revolution, 27 January 2025, url; VOA, Deadly mob violence underscores Bangladesh's security breakdown, 21 September 2024, url; Sharma, P., Rush over trial may be Yunus’s way of keeping Hasina out of Bangladesh, 24 November 2024, url
- 263
Al Jazeera, Young Bangladesh citizens direct traffic in Dhaka, 7 August 2024, url
- 264
Netra News, Court filing alleges deadly custodial abuse by Bangladesh Army personnel, 1 February 2025, url
- 265
Business Standard (The), Armed forces' magistracy powers extended for third time by 60 more days, 13 March 2025, url
- 266
Daily Star (The), Armed forces: Magistracy power extended again, 14 March 2025, url
- 267
HRW, After the Monsoon Revolution, 27 January 2025, url
- 268
DW, Can Bangladesh police rebuild trust after violent protests?, 21 September 2024, url
- 269
UN OHCHR, Human Rights Violations and Abuses Related to the Protests of July and August 2024 in Bangladesh, 12 February 2025, url, paras. 214–216; HRW, After the Monsoon Revolution, 27 January 2025, url; Netra News, An eye-witness account from inside Jatrabari Police Station of the last bloodbath, 15 January 2025, url
- 270
TIB, ‘New Bangladesh’, Tracking the First 100 Days after the Fall of the Authoritarian Regime, 18 November 2024, url, p. 8
- 271
Daily Star (The), Mob violence: Causes, consequences, and pathways to justice, 11 April 2025, url
- 272
International Crisis Group, A New Era in Bangladesh? The First Hundred Days of Reform, 14 November 2024, url; Dhaka Tribune, Our law enforcement is getting better, but it must do more, 23 April 2025, url
- 273
Daily Star (The), A clarion call for police reform, 13 January 2025, url; DW, Can Bangladesh police rebuild trust after violent protests?, 21 September 2024, url
- 274
Diplomat (The), Crime Wave Sweeps Post-Hasina Bangladesh, 3 March 2025, url
- 275
Bdnews24.com, Reforms a ‘disappointment’ for police as ‘fear’ looms over taking effective action, 30 April 2025, url
- 276
Bdnews24.com, Crime spirals out of control: murders, muggings, extortion surge in Bangladesh, 11 February 2025, url; Daily Star (The), Mob violence: Causes, consequences, and pathways to justice, 11 April 2025, url
- 277
Bdnews24.com, Reforms a ‘disappointment’ for police as ‘fear’ looms over taking effective action, 30 April 2025, url
- 278
Daily Star (The), Mob violence: Causes, consequences, and pathways to justice, 11 April 2025, url
- 279
Al Jazeera, Bangladesh chief justice agrees to resign amid new student protests, 10 August 2024, url
- 280
Business Standard (The), Govt transfers 11 senior police officials, including DIG, in major reshuffle, 7 May 2025, url; Business Standard (The), Major reshuffle in police: 53 transferred, 104 promoted to additional SPs, 27 February 2025, url; International Crisis Group, A New Era in Bangladesh? The First Hundred Days of Reform, 14 November 2024, url; Daily Star (The), Reshuffle in police top order, 5 March 2025, url
- 281
Diplomat (The), Crime Wave Sweeps Post-Hasina Bangladesh, 3 March 2025, url
- 282
Diplomat (The), Crime Wave Sweeps Post-Hasina Bangladesh, 3 March 2025, url; International Crisis Group, A New Era in Bangladesh? The First Hundred Days of Reform, 14 November 2024, url
- 283
International Crisis Group, A New Era in Bangladesh? The First Hundred Days of Reform, 14 November 2024, url
- 284
UNDP, Why police transformation is critical for Bangladesh, 19 November 2024, url
- 285
Diplomat (The), Crime Wave Sweeps Post-Hasina Bangladesh, 3 March 2025, url; Al Jazeera, ‘Gotham but no Batman’: Crime grips Bangladesh 6 months after Hasina fled, 4 March 2025, url
- 286
Al Jazeera, ‘Gotham but no Batman’: Crime grips Bangladesh 6 months after Hasina fled, 4 March 2025, url