Vandals attack Kader Siddique’s home in Tangail

Assailants hurled bricks and stones, damaging two cars and several windows before fleeing the scene

The home of Liberation War hero and Krishak Sramik Janata League chief Bangabir Kader Siddique has been attacked and vandalised in Tangail.

The incident occurred around 1am on Sunday at the residence, known as Sonar Bangla, in Sakhipur, according to Tanvir Ahmed, chief of Tangail Police Station.

Police said bricks and stones were thrown at the building, smashing several windows. Two cars parked inside the premises were also damaged.

“At night, Sir [Kader Siddique] was asleep on the second floor. About 10-15 men hurled bricks and stones at the house. They climbed over the gate with a ladder and vandalised two vehicles,” caretaker Raju Mia said.

He added that the attackers fled when local residents rushed to the scene.

The attack within a day after Kader, a decorated freedom fighter holding the title of "Bir Uttam" -- the second highest award for individual gallantry in Bangladesh -- suddenly fell ill while addressing a party meeting in Sakhipur’s Khan Market on Saturday afternoon.

Doctors later examined him at his home and said he was in stable condition. He had been resting at his residence since then.

Tanvir said an investigation had been launched into the attack.

“Those responsible will be identified and brought under the law soon,” he said.

This was not the first time the freedom fighter has come under attack in recent times. In August 2024, Kader's vehicle was attacked and vandalised while he attempted to pay his respects at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s portrait at Dhaka's Dhanmondi 32.

The incident sparked criticism of the unstable political climate and the targeting of revered freedom fighters.

Just weeks ago, his elder brother Abdul Latif Siddique, also a freedom fighter and former minister, was among 16 people arrested under the Anti-Terrorism Act after a roundtable on the Liberation War at Dhaka Reporters Unity was violently disrupted. The group calling themselves “July Fighters” stormed the event, chanting slogans and harassing the mostly elderly participants, including Latif, a Dhaka University law professor, and a journalist, before handing them over to police.

Police later said the event was part of an attempt to “destabilise the interim government”, and a court sent all 16 detainees to jail, rejecting their bail petitions.