New Delhi (TIP): Bangladesh’s former prime minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5 signalled her determination to return home in December after two years in self-exile in India, despite the risk of arrest or a death sentence, saying she wanted to help put the country back on the right track by restoring democracy.
In her first news conference since fleeing Dhaka on August 5, 2024, Hasina outlined several demands ahead of her planned return, including lifting the ban on her Awami League party and releasing political prisoners. Despite repeated questions at the virtual interaction, she did not announce a specific date for her homecoming.
The Bangladesh government reacted sharply, with the foreign ministry expressing outrage over the news conference and saying India had not responded to repeated requests to extradite Hasina.
The 78-year-old has lived in self-exile in India since fleeing Bangladesh and described India as a “great friend” that has always stood by her country during difficult times.
“I know they may put me in jail or they may kill me, anything may happen, but still I have to go home,” Hasina said while responding to questions after her address. She did not appear on video during the 90-minute event, which featured several Awami League leaders.
“Whatever fate awaits me, I will return to my people… I know I may be detained. I may be sent to prison. They may try to enforce verdicts issued in fabricated cases. But fear cannot decide my duty to the people,” she said, referring to the death sentence given to her last year by the International Crimes Tribunal over the use of lethal force against protesters in 2024.
Hasina insisted her return was not about bringing the Awami League back to power but about restoring democracy and justice in Bangladesh.
“My return, and the return of the Awami League to the democratic process, is not about power. It is about putting Bangladesh back on the right track. It is about reviving the country’s path of development, progress, secularism and stability,” she said.
“Bangladesh needs reconciliation, Bangladesh needs constitutional development and constitutional position. Bangladesh’s people should have their constitutional rights and justice – now they have nothing,” she added.
Hasina outlined what she described as the “necessary steps to save Bangladesh”. She said the ban on the Awami League must be lifted, political prisoners released and false cases dropped.
She also called for the restoration of freedom of speech, protection of media freedom, judicial independence and law enforcement agencies that “must serve the people, not those who use power for revenge”.
Hasina said December had been chosen for her return because it is “our victory month”.
Bangladesh became an independent nation in December 1971 after the Liberation War with Pakistan, making the month especially significant for the Awami League, whose founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman — Hasina’s father — led the country to independence.
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