Excavators depart, hand demolition continues at Dhanmondi-32
- Update Time : 07:33:20 am, Thursday, 6 February 2025
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By 10:30 am, the excavators had left, leaving the Dhanmondi-32 residence of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to be dismantled by hand. Protesters then turned their attention to demolishing the building behind the house, which housed an art gallery and served as an extension of the museum on Road 32 in Dhanmondi. Nearby, another structure that had previously housed several Awami League offices was also being torn down. By noon, much of the interior walls had been destroyed, though the main structure remained intact.
Thousands of onlookers gathered at the site, while groups resembling day laborers carried out the demolition, mainly stripping metal pipes and fittings for resale, leaving the rest of the debris untouched. A young man, wearing a flag bandana, emerged from the wreckage holding a book on Sheikh Russel, mentioning that there had been a few more inside, but they had already been taken.
People of all ages visited the site, capturing photos with the demolished house and hoisting flags. The protest, which started as a Facebook event called “Bulldozer March,” drew crowds to Dhanmondi 32 at 7:30 pm the previous evening. By 9:30 pm, the building was set on fire. Later that night, a crane and an excavator arrived, and by 2:00 am, parts of the structure had been reduced to rubble. The demonstration, which had briefly paused overnight, resumed at 7:45 am as more people gathered at the scene.
