The rage displayed by current protests is now experienced on the part of Former Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza, who appeared to have become a victim of the ongoing violent demonstrations in his own country.
These disturbances started last month when university students demanded that quotas be abolished in civil service jobs. As such, one-third of these jobs in the civil service are reserved for children of soldiers who fought during Bangladesh’s war for independence from Pakistan in 1971.
While students got much of what they demanded from the government of Bangladesh, these rallies soon morphed into an anti-government movement. The protest was joined not only by other citizens but also by students and it didn’t take long before the whole thing became violent.
Media outlets report that violence has led to the deaths of more than 300 people. On Monday, (5th August), things took a turn for the worse when Bangladesh’s longest-serving Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country. Sheikh Hasina has been in power since 2009 after which she stepped down and handed over leadership to the Bangladesh military.
Bangladesh cricketer Liton Das’ house was set on fire by protesters
Amid turbulent protests and reports of arson across Bangladesh, tweets regarding the alleged burning of Hindu houses and temples began circulating on social media. Among those posts, some people on Twitter claimed that they set fire to the house belonging to Bangladeshi cricketer Liton Das.
But it turned out that the stories were incorrect. After Hasina fled, social media posts claimed that cricketer Liton Das’s house was set on fire by protesters. Bengali Hindu Das has been playing for Bangladesh for many years.
Contrary to what is being said on different platforms, the fire was reportedly gutted at the house owned by former cricket captain Mashrafe Mortaza, MP from Awami League led by Hasina. The homes of other Awami League leaders were also targeted by the protestors.
Mashrafe Mortaza’s home was targeted:
However even after Hasina left and resigned the protesters were still targeting government buildings statues and some other people’s houses. As per media reports Mashrafe Mortaza’s house was also attacked on Monday.
The Bangladeshi great is a Member of Parliament representing the ruling Awami League party from the Narail-2 constituency in the Khulna division. Earlier this year he was elected to this position as a representative of Hasina’s party.
As reported by news agencies protestors were furious with Mashrafe Mortaza’s alleged silence regarding “mass killings and mass arrests together with students”. A video showing his house on fire has been widely circulated on social networks.
A mob vandalized and set on fire the house of former Bangladesh cricket captain
Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, MP of Narail-2 constituency. Several homes of Awami League leaders have been set on fire by mobs. Chaos in many towns of Bangladesh pic.twitter.com/4RBYB7Rh7L— Smita Prakash (@smitaprakash) August 5, 2024
Mashrafe Mortaza is a well-known cricketer in Bangladesh. His fantastic bowling and captaincy records have earned him recognition throughout his career, which spanned several years. The number of Tests, ODIs (88), and T20Is (28) he captained speaks volumes about his influence and experience.
For almost 20 years, he represented Bangladesh on international platforms. He made his debut in 2001 and has since taken part in 36 Tests, 220 ODIs, and 54 T20Is. During this time he took 78 Test wickets, 270 ODIs’ wickets and 42 T20Is’ wickets as well. Across all formats of cricket, they made a total of more than 2500 runs including four half-centuries.
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