Staff Correspondent:

Thousands of people gathered at Shahbagh in the capitalon Saturday  afternoon (20 December) to demand justice for Inqilab Mancha spokesperson Sharif Osman Hadi, after he was laid to rest on the Dhaka University campus.

Processions began arriving at Shahbagh one after another after Hadi’s burial, with a large crowd assembling at the intersection to press for justice.

Protesters were seen chanting slogans, including “Delhi or Dhaka? Dhaka, Dhaka,” “Modi or Hadi? Hadi, Hadi,” “We want justice,” and “Catch Awami League, throw them in jail,” as they gathered at the site.

Fatima Tasnim Juma, member secretary of the Dhaka University unit of Inqilab Mancha and Liberation War and Democratic Movement secretary of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union, called on people to join the gathering.

“Everyone come to Shahbag,” she wrote in a Facebook post after Hadi’s funeral.

Earlier in the day, Sharif Osman Hadi was laid to rest beside the grave of national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam on the Dhaka University campus, following his namaz-e-janaza at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad amid tight security.

From morning, people had arrived at Manik Mia Avenue in small processions to attend the funeral prayer, which was joined by a large number of mourners.

Hadi’s death has triggered protests in Dhaka and several other districts since Thursday night, with demonstrators demanding justice for him.