Days after Osman Hadi's killing, another Bangladesh student leader shot in head

The victim, identified as Motaleb Sikder, was shot in Khulna as assailants targeted his head.

Updated on: Dec 22, 2025, 16:28:51 IST

By HT News Desk

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Days after the death of student leader Osman Hadi, another leader was shot in Bangladesh on Monday.

Security personnel in Dhaka after unrest grew in Bangladesh, (PTI)

The victim, identified as Motaleb Sikder, was shot in Khulna as assailants targeted his head, the Daily Star reported.

“Miscreants opened fire targeting his head around 11:45 AM, and he was rushed to Khulna Medical College Hospital in critical condition,” the newspaper outlet quoted Animesh Mondol, officer-in-charge (investigation) of Sonadanga Model Police Station, as saying.

The officer said that Motaleb was out of danger, adding that the bullet entered through one side of his ear, pierced the skin, and exited through the other side.

Sikder is the leader of the National Citizen Party (NCP), serving as its Khulna divisional chief and central organiser of NCP Sramik Shakti, according to a Facebook statement regarding the incident from the party's joint principal coordinator, Mahmuda Mitu.

The National Citizen Party was initiated by the Students Against Discrimination and the Jatiya Nagorik Committee in Bangladesh following the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The party was established on February 28 earlier this year as the first student-led political party in the history of Bangladesh.

Osman Hadi's killing

Osman Hadi, a Bangladeshi leader from the 2024 student uprising, died on Thursday after succumbing to bullet injuries sustained during an attack on him, which happened on December 12 in Dhaka.

Hadi was evacuated by air from Bangladesh to the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) Neurosurgical Intensive Care Unit on December 15 to receive emergency medical treatment.

“Despite the best efforts of the doctors from SGH and the National Neuroscience Institute, Mr Hadi succumbed to his injuries on 18 December 2025,” Singapore ministry of foreign affairs said in an official statement.

Bangladesh Police said on Sunday that they have no "specific information" on the whereabouts of the prime suspect in the killing. The remarks came a day after Hadi's Inqilab Mancha party on Saturday issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the interim government, demanding "visible progress" in the arrest of those responsible for his killing.

The death triggered attacks and vandalism across Bangladesh, including stone-hurling at the Assistant Indian High Commissioner's residence in Chattogram on Thursday.

Hadi was laid to rest on Saturday amid tight security beside the grave of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam near the Dhaka University mosque.

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