2025 Awami League ban protests

Movement to ban the Awami League
Movement to ban the Awami League
Part of aftermath of the July Revolution
	Protesters on Hair Road near the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka on 9 May
Date	8 May 2025 – 11 May 2025 (3 days)
Location	Bangladesh
Caused by	July Revolution; Distrust in Muhammad Yunus; Exodus of former President Mohammad Abdul Hamid;
Goals	Banning the Bangladesh Awami League as a terrorist and treasonous organization; Inclusion of provisions to try political parties under the "International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973"; Issuance of the July Declaration;
Methods	Protests; Political demonstration; Blockades; Internet activism;
Resulted in	Amendment of the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act on 10 May 2025 to include provisions for prosecution of political parties; Ban on all activities of the Bangladesh Awami League and its affiliated, like-minded, and associate organizations until completion of trial in the International Crimes Tribunal (announced on 12 May 2025); Suspension of the Bangladesh Awami League’s registration by the Election Commission of Bangladesh on 12 May 2025;
Parties
National Anti-Fascist Unity; National Citizen Party; Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami; Gono Odhikar Parishad; Inqilab Moncho; Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh; Students Against Discrimination; University students; General mass;	Interim government Bangladesh Nationalist Party; Jatiya Party; Krishak Sramik Janata League; Communist Party of Bangladesh;
Lead figures
	Hasnat Abdullah; Nahid Islam; Shafiqur Rahman; Nurul Haque Nur; Sharif Osman Hadi; Muhibbullah Babunagari; Pinaki Bhattacharya; Muhammad Yunus; Asif Nazrul; Asif Mahmud; Mahfuj Alam; Jahangir Alam Chowdhury; Tarique Rahman; GM Quader; Kader Siddique; Mohammad Shah Alam;

The 2025 Awami League ban protests was a nationwide movement which began on 8 May 2025, under the banner of "National Anti-Fascist Unity" led by Hasnat Abdullah, leader of the National Citizen Party, demanding a ban on the Awami League. The movement formally ended on 10 May 2025, when the government announced the suspension of the party’s activities until the verdict of the ongoing trial at the International Crimes Tribunal was delivered.

In 2024, the July Revolution brought an end to the authoritarian rule of the Awami League, following which Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India and went into voluntary exile. On 8 May 2025, the departure of Awami League leader and former President Mohammad Abdul Hamid sparked widespread controversy across the country. During the uprising, he had been accused of ordering the July massacre, and a case had been filed against him. In protest and expressing distrust towards the government, Hasanat Abdullah began a sit-in demonstration in front of the official residence of Interim Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, the Jamuna State Guest House, which gradually evolved into the movement demanding the ban of the Awami League under the banner of National Anti-Fascist Unity.

The movement, which continued from 8 to 11 May, centered on three main demands: banning the Bangladesh Awami League as a terrorist and treasonous organization, amending the "International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973" to include provisions for trying political parties, and issuing the July Declaration. In the midst of the ongoing protests, on 10 May 2025, the government issued a gazette amending the law to allow for punishment of political parties and their affiliated groups. Subsequently, on 12 May 2025, the government officially banned all activities of the Bangladesh Awami League and its affiliated, like-minded, and associate organizations until the conclusion of ongoing trials at the International Crimes Tribunal, and the Bangladesh Election Commission suspended the party’s registration.