Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman

The assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was incident of homicide of the president of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and almost his entire family. It took place in the early hours of August 15, 1975, when a group of Bangladesh Army personnel went to Sheikh Mujib's residence and killed him, resulting in a coup d'état. Later, Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad was made president.

In the 1970 General elections in Pakistan, Sheikh Muib's Awami League won the general election of Pakistan winning the majority of the seats in the National Assembly including 167 of the 169 seats in East Pakistan. Pakistan military government delayed handover of power. By March his house had become the defact head of government in East Pakistan. At the start of Bangladesh Liberation War he was arrested from his home by Pakistani soldiers. He was made the President of the provisional Mujibnagar Government, formed on 10 April 1970, and the head of the Bangladeshi armed forces. Following the independence of Bangladesh on 16 December 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was released from custody in Pakistan via London. He was flown from London, England and then stopped over in India on way to Bangladesh. Mujibur led the government as Prime Minister of Bangladesh for three years.

He was made later President of Bangladesh. He established a national unity government, BAKSAL on 7 June 1975. by banning all political parties, and independent press. He was the president of the BAKSAL. Through the BAKSAL was meant to bring stability to Bangladesh and improve law and order, it created hostility among the bureaucracy, ilitary and civil society. They and his supporters were against him heading an authoritarian one party state. His declaration of one party rule with the formation of the Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League was marked by widespread censorship and abuse of the judiciary, and was opposed by the civil society, intellectuals and all political groups. The country was in chaos when corruption was rampant and food shortage and poor distribution led to a disastrous famine. Nationalization has simply failed to yield any tangible progress. It was a very weak government with no clear path and the country was nearly bankrupt. Lawrence Lifschultz wrote in the Far Eastern Economic Review in 1974 that Bangladeshis considered "the corruption and malpractices and plunder of national wealth" was "unprecedented".