Resignation of Bangladesh President Mohammad Shahabuddin
Bangladesh President Mohammad Shahabuddin resigned on Friday, almost two years before the end of his five-year term, Reuters reported, citing local media.His resignation comes amid reports that the government is no longer comfortable with him continuing in office due to his perceived ties with former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.Shahabuddin’s resignation comes just days after Hasina, who has been living in India since she was ousted in a student-led uprising in August 2024, announced she plans to return to Bangladesh in December and surrender after being convicted by a war crimes court.Under Bangladesh’s constitution, Parliament Speaker Hafizuddin Ahmed will serve as interim president until a new head of state is elected.According to Reuters, the government asked him to step down due to his long association with Hasina after she announced her plans to return to the country. Shahabuddin, a former Hasina ally and candidate of the now-banned Awami League, was elected unopposed in 2023 for a five-year term. He is the last constitutional officeholder from the previous Awami League administration to remain in office after the 2024 uprising that forced Hasina to flee to India.
According to Bangladeshi media reports, the government has become dissatisfied with reports that Shahabuddin recently tried to reconnect with Hasina. However, senior political leaders said the reasons behind his resignation were “more complex”, especially after Hasina publicly announced her intention to return.Last November, the International Crimes Court in Bangladesh sentenced Hasina and former Interior Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal to death in absentia for their role in suppressing student protests in 2024, charges they denied.Shahabuddin, a former judge and veteran of the 1971 liberation war, had previously told Reuters that he intended to step down after the general elections, saying he had been marginalized during the interim administration that replaced Hasina’s government.The resignation comes at a politically sensitive time as Prime Minister Tariq Rahman’s government prepares for Hasina’s planned return, which is expected to test the country’s political stability after two years of unrest.
