Bid farewell to Rajib<\/strong>
\nPeople joined the Shahbagh protests sporting black badges on Saturday to bid farewell to blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider, who had been actively involved in the protests before being killed by assailants on Friday night.
\nProtesters, with the coffin of Rajib wrapped in the national flag in the protest venue, vowed not to leave the streets to push for their demand for death penalty for all war criminals..
\nUnnamed assailants hacked to death Rajib near his house at Palashnagar of Mirpur in Dhaka on Friday night.
\nThe police said that Rajib, hacked in the face and throat, was found dead about 9:30pm in a dark place.
\nThe prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, meanwhile, visited Rajib\u2019s family at Palashnagar in the afternoon where she said that the Jamaat-e-Islami and its student front Islami Chhatra Shibir had no right to do politics in Bangladesh.
\nHasina sought people\u2019s cooperation to save Bangladesh from Jamaat and urged people to stand by Shahbagh protesters.
\nThe government has taken all-out measures to ensure security for Shahbagh protesters, she told reporters later.
\nPeople, irrespective of age, faith and party affiliation, thronged Shahbagh to attend the namaz-e-janaza of Rajib, on the 12th consecutive day of protests on Saturday. The namaz-e-janaza was held about 6:00pm
\nThe youths started their protests on February 5 afternoon after International Crimes Tribunal 2 convicted Jamaat-e-islami assistant secretary general Quader Molla to life in prison. Protesters were demanding death penalty for Quader Molla.
\nBlogger Imran H Sarker termed Rajib a new generation freedom fighter. \u2018We vow by touch the coffin of Rajib that we will not leave the streets until Rajib\u2019s killers and war criminals are convicted to death penalty.\u2019
\nRajib\u2019s uncle Alam said that the dead body did not belong to any party and urged all not to leave the streets until justice was meted out.
\nProtestors said that the body would be kept in a mortuary for the night. He would be buried in their village home at Kapasia in Gazipur on Sunday.
\nImmediately after the funeral rites, Shabagh protesters raised their hands breaking the silence shouting \u2018Jay Bangla, Jay Bangla.\u2019 Other slogans demanding justice for the killing followed.
\nEarlier at daybreak, protesters started the day\u2019s programme singing the national anthem and observing a minute\u2019s silence paying respect to Rajib.
\nThey shouted slogans such as \u2018Shaheed Rajib er rakta amader dhamanite (Martyred Rajib\u2019s blood flows in our vein)\u2019 and \u2018Ar nay pratirodh, ebar habe pratishodh (No more resistance, it\u2019s time for revenge).\u2019
\nPeople also shouted \u2018Shaheed Rajib er dabi, razakar er phansi (Death penalty for collaborators was the demand of martyred Rajib), \u2018Shaheed Rajiber rakta britha jete debo na\u2019 (Blood of Rajib will not go in vain) and \u2018Razakarer hale phansi, sabar mukhe phutbe hashi\u2019 (Everyone will smile if collaborators are hanged).
\nA group of band artistes including members of Miles, Feedback, Souls and Artcell expressed their solidarity with the protests and sang war songs. Fakir Alamgir and Mahmud Selim sang patriotic songs.
\nFBCCI, BGMEA and BKMEA leaders and actor ATM Shamsuzzaman also joined in. A large number of people with physical disabilities also attended.
\nThe Communist Party of Bangladesh and the Socialist Party of Bangladesh in the evening joined the protests.
\nThe protesters urged all students to join the programme of hoisting the national flag and singing the national anthem in all educational institutions, including mardassahs, at 10:00am today.
\nProtestors by the 12th day of protests have covered almost all giant hoardings with banners, set up banners on top of the buildings round the crossing.
\nThey also hung several giant banners coming down from roofs of BSMMU and BIRDEM hospitals. Banners also covered all the walls in the area, with slogans such as \u2018Amara bari jachchhi ba, kono beiman ke chharchhina\u2019 (We are not going home. No traitors will be spared).
\nA banner sporting caricatures of war criminals says: \u2018History never lies\u2026 hang them all\u2019 and \u2018Amra amader baba-mayer hathyakarider phansi chai (We want death penalty for killers of our parents).\u2019
\nMany banners have portraits of Jahanara Imam, who led a people\u2019s court trying war criminals in 1992, with demands \u2018Execute the verdict of the people\u2019s court, hang all war criminals including Quader Molla.\u2019
\nMany individuals also brought placards with popular slogans such as \u2018Phansi, phansi, phansi chai \u2013 Quader Mollar phansi chai\u2019 (Hang Quader Molla), \u2018Ka te Quader Molla, tui razakar (Ka for Quader Molla, you are a collaborator),\u2019 \u2018Ga te Ghulam Azam, tui razakar\u2019 (Ga for Ghulam Azam, you are a collaborator)\u2019 and \u2018Kandte asini phansir dabi niye esechhi (We have not come here to cry. We want them to be hanged).\u2019
\nLocal people have, meanwhile, gathered between Mirpur Section 10 and 12, blocking the road in protest at Rajib\u2019s killing. Many schoolchildren took plart in the blockade.<\/p>\n

Courtesy of New Age<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bid farewell to Rajib People joined the Shahbagh protests sporting black badges on Saturday to bid farewell to blogger Ahmed Rajib Haider, who had been actively involved in the protests before being killed by assailants on Friday night. Protesters, with the coffin of Rajib wrapped in the national flag in the protest venue, vowed not … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[9851,9878],"yoast_head":"\n