Former Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina's residence to be turned into a museum of revolution

Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, currently leading Bangladesh's caretaker government, announced Monday that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s palace will be transformed into a museum to commemorate the revolution that led to her ouster. Yunus stated that the museum should capture memories of Hasina's alleged misrule and the public’s anger that ultimately removed her from power. He made these comments while touring the damaged Ganabhaban palace.

Following a student-led uprising that forced Sheikh Hasina to flee by helicopter to India on August 5, Yunus, the 84-year-old microfinance pioneer, was appointed as the nation’s "chief advisor."

Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule saw extensive human rights abuses, including mass detentions and extrajudicial killings of political opponents. This month, a Bangladeshi court issued an arrest warrant for her. Before her departure, a violent police crackdown left over 700 dead, and as she fled, thousands stormed her former residence, which the government labeled a "symbol of repression."

The palace’s walls, scarred by looting and chaos following Hasina’s escape, now bear graffiti condemning her fallen regime. The museum will also feature a replica of the notorious "House of Mirrors" or *Aynaghar* detention center, where prisoners reportedly saw only themselves. “The *Aynaghar* will remind visitors of the torture endured by those held in secret,” Yunus said.

The upheaval following Hasina’s fall led to looting at the museum in her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s former residence as well. Apurba Jahangir, a press official from Yunus’s office, announced that construction on the new museum is set to begin in December, saying, "Construction hasn’t started yet, but it will soon."

Sheikh Hasina, now 77, has not appeared in public since her escape. She was last officially reported at a military airbase near New Delhi, India.