All members of Bangladesh human rights commission resign

Bangladesh NHRC chairman Kamal Uddin Ahmed and five other members have step down on Thursday after a report highlighted a rise in crimes and political violence in Bangladesh.

Dhaka, Nov 8 (PTI): All members of Bangladesh’s National Human Rights Commission resigned on Thursday, three months after the interim government took charge.

National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) chairman Kamal Uddin Ahmed and five other members submitted their resignation letters to the president on Thursday, news portal BDNews24.com said.

The resignations come days after the Commission’s report highlighted a rise in mob violence in the country.

The commission’s full-time members—Md Salim Reza, Aminul Islam, Kongjari Chowdhury, Biswajit Chanda, and Tania Haque—also tendered their resignations.

The commission was appointed by former president Md Abdul Hamid in December 2022.

BDNews24.com quoted the commission’s spokesperson Yusha Rahman, who confirmed the resignations, but when asked to clarify the reason, he said, “I am unaware (of the reason).” Several governmental departments underwent substantial reshuffles and saw numerous resignations following the former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s abrupt resignation on August 5.

Hasina resigned and fled to India following widespread protests against her Awami League-led government over a controversial job quota system.

Earlier, in its monthly report, the NHRC highlighted a rise in crimes such as mob beatings, rapes, and other offences in October, the news portal said.

It also documented political harassment, assaults on political leaders, and other violent acts.

Two days after the report’s release, all commission members tendered their resignations,” BDNews24.com said.

Communal tensions rose in the country after Hasina’s resignation, with over 2,000 reported attacks against the minority Hindu community since then.