On the day before her ouster, billions of taka were reportedly stored at Ganabhaban under the supervision of several officials. Multiple reliable sources have confirmed this information to Bangla Brief. On the night of August 4th, Sheikh Hasina held a final meeting with her five closest leaders and officials, including Law Minister Anisul Haque, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, Mohammad Ali Arafat, Major General Ziaul Ahsan, and a Lieutenant General.
During the meeting, Sheikh Hasina stated, “No more waiting, no more compromise. We must restore order by shooting indiscriminately if necessary.” Bangla Brief has learned that in the meeting, Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun informed that the police were struggling to maintain control, citing both a shortage of ammunition and increasing crowds that could not be suppressed through force alone. Although Sheikh Hasina praised the IGP, she became increasingly agitated towards the end of the meeting, saying, “You’re not capable of handling this. I will order the military to take action and escalate the situation.”
The military had already conveyed that they would not resort to using force under any circumstances. Upon hearing this, Sheikh Hasina allegedly said, “After all I’ve done for you, now you’re trying to save yourselves. I’ll do what needs to be done.” She further questioned, “Why isn’t the military imposing martial law? That would bring the situation under control.”
Bangla Brief has also learned that Army Chief General Wakaru Zaman had previously made it clear that the military was not in favor of martial law, expressing doubts about its effectiveness in restoring order and highlighting the unfavorable global context for such an action. The meeting concluded thereafter.
Multiple sources confirmed that there was a decision to distribute funds to misdirect the movement, and the cash stored at Ganabhaban was handed over to specific individuals. The next day, Sheikh Hasina fled, and Ganabhaban was looted, with the looters taking the money. However, the exact amount of money remains unknown. The public later handed over 5.5 million taka to the army after recovering it from the looters.
