Former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina
Dhaka: Former Bangladesh Prime Minister and leader of the banned Awami League Sheikh Hasina, who was sentenced to death in her homeland, announced Friday that she and her party colleagues plan to return to Dhaka “voluntarily” next December and surrender.Sheikh Hasina told the new Reuters news agency: “They may arrest me when I return, and they may kill me.” “I still have to leave,” the 78-year-old told the news agency, even as sources in the BNP government led by Tariq Rahman sought to downplay her remarks, saying it was her decision. They added that whether she is extradited or returned alone, she will face prosecution.This is the second time that Hasina has announced her intention to return from India, where she fled to escape angry crowds that threatened to kill her amid violent protests against her government in 2024.However, Hasina’s return will not be a safe proposition.We want Hasina back so she can be executed: NCP MPThe repetition on Friday appeared to indicate an assessment that the BNP’s removal represents a change in attitude for the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, which has made no secret of its hostility towards Hasina, who was sentenced to death during her term after what many see as a show trial.Her return may also help the BNP government, which opponents accuse of not making strong efforts to restore Hasina, as well as remove tension in relations with New Delhi, which pro-Pakistan elements and Islamists have used to stir up hostility towards India.
On her intention to return, a former member of Hasina’s government, who is also in “exile”, told TOI, “Public perception has shifted in a big way, and the increasingly broad consensus, globally and locally, on inclusive politics in Bangladesh is the strength of the Awami League.”“Ultimately, we expect that the political leadership in Bangladesh will now accept the political reality that everyone expects an inclusive policy. Political exclusion is not in the interest of the socio-economic situation and law and order,” he said.Referring to her interviews, including those published by NDTV on June 29, government sources said that if Hasina returns, she will have to face trial in several cases, including those related to crimes against humanity. In one of these cases, she was sentenced to death.However, Hasina’s return would not be a safe proposition, as a member of parliament from the National Congress Party – an ally of the hardline Islamist group and the party whose members led protests against Hasina – has vowed to ensure her execution.
“We saw an interview. Someone said they are planning to come back in December,” said NCP member Nahid Islam, the opposition leader in parliament. “Our demand is that the country has already suffered 16 years of devastation. Now, we also want this person back, so the death sentence can be carried out.”However, Hasina and her colleagues may be counting on the support the Awami League still enjoys, while aware of the possibility that it will disappear in the absence of a family member of the country’s founder, her father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. “If death comes, I want it to come on my land, where my parents are buried and where their blood was shed,” she said.