Former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday declared that she is determined to return home in December to put the country on the "right track" by restoring democracy notwithstanding the risk of facing the threat of imprisonment or a death sentence.
Hasina made the remarks during an audio-only virtual press conference -- her first public media interaction since fleeing to India on August 5, 2024 in the face of a massive protest. Attendees were unable to see the former prime minister and heard only her voice.
She also demanded lifting of the existing ban on the Awami League party and release of political prisoners while calling upon the international community to support people of Bangladesh in their struggle for democracy and justice.
The Bangladesh foreign ministry reacted sharply to Hasina's media interaction and said the country is "outraged" as the interaction was permitted to be held despite Dhaka conveying concerns to New Delhi over the likely ramifications of the event on the bilateral relations.
"I know, they may put me in jail or kill me," Hasina said, adding "I will go back home to be with my people." The Awami League leader also described India as a "great friend" of Bangladesh and said it always stood by her country in times of difficulty.
In her comments, Hasina delved into the prevailing political environment in her country and the challenges facing its people, asserting that her return is not about power but to put Bangladesh back on the track of development, secularism and prosperity.
"Whatever fate awaits me, I will return to my people. I cannot stay away while my beloved countrymen are suffering," she said at the media interaction held at the Foreign Correspondents' Club.
"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. My life moved beyond calculations of personal safety long ago.
"In 1975, I lost my family. I spent six years in exile. After returning home, I fought against military rule, dictatorship, assassination attempts and political conspiracies," she said.
The former prime minister also ruled out any back-channel negotiations with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government on her return.
"I am not worried about my own future. I am worried about the future of Bangladesh. I want to return because the people deserve security, development, prosperity and peace," she added.
Hasina said that although she was "forced away" from her country, she was "never separated" from its people.
She said the people of Bangladesh deserve a state that protects them, an economy that gives them opportunity and democracy that gives them rights.
"My return and the return of the Awami League to the democratic process is not about power, it is to put Bangladesh on the right track. It is about reviving the country's path of development, progress, secularism and stability," she said.
"I want to return to Bangladesh for one purpose: to stand beside the people and help improve their lives. The people are the source of all power. I believe in them. I trust them," she said.
Last November, Hasina was sentenced to death in absentia by a special tribunal in Dhaka for alleged "crimes against humanity" over her government's brutal crackdown on student-led protests in 2024.
Since the verdict, Dhaka has been urging New Delhi to extradite her to face the law.
Hasina said the present situation in Bangladesh is very disturbing. "Fear has entered homes, workplaces, and educational campuses; this is not the Bangladesh we built." She said Bangladesh's crisis is not only a domestic challenge as it can affect regional peace, security, trade, development and human dignity.
"That is why I call upon the international community and all the friends of Bangladesh to stand with the people of Bangladesh in their struggle for democracy, justice and peace," she said.
"A stable Bangladesh matters for South Asia, for the Bay of Bengal, for development partners, and for all countries that believe in democracy, rule of law and justice." Hasina also demanded lifting the ban on the Awami League as well as the release of political prisoners.
"The ban on Awami League must be lifted, political prisoners must be released, false cases must be dropped, freedom of speech must be restored, media freedom must be protected and judicial independence must be guaranteed," she said.
Hasina alleged that the protests in Bangladesh in July and August 2024 that resulted in the collapse of her government were not a peaceful student movement.
She alleged that "organised groups" worked to turn the movement into a "violent political instrument".
"It was not simply a spontaneous students protest. There was no visible or responsible leadership. Instructions were given invisibly. It was organised and used to create a path to power outside the ballot box," Hasina alleged.
To a question on whether she was in touch with the ruling dispensation in Dhaka, Hasina shot back: "It is their matter what it will do. I have decided to go. I will go." Though Hasina had given a series of e-mail interviews over the past few months, it was her first media interaction after taking shelter in India.
Hasina's son Sajeeb Wazed Joy claimed that political killings have been legalised in Bangladesh since August 2024.
Bangladesh today is a failed state, there is no law and order in the country today, he said.
What should concern New Delhi most is that Bangladesh has become another Pakistan on India's eastern border, he alleged.
Several senior Awami League leaders also spoke at the news conference.
In her remarks, Hasina also tried to reach out to the youths of Bangladesh.
"Do not allow anyone to turn your strength into an instrument of destruction. Ask questions. Raise demands. Protest when you see injustice. That is your right. But see the truth with your own eyes," she said.
Hasina said Bangladesh needs national reconciliation and healing.
"But reconciliation cannot mean impunity. Those who conspired against the country, committed crimes and caused suffering must face justice through proper legal process," she said.
In its reaction, Bangladesh foreign ministry said the country is "outraged that Hasina was allowed to engage in live interaction with the media in New Delhi where "she and her henchmen launched venomous vitriol" against Bangladesh and its people.
It said Hasina's interaction on the Indian soil "stands as an affront to the sovereignty of Bangladesh".
"Bangladesh desires to maintain a constructive, mutually beneficial, and forward-looking relationship with India based on sovereign equality, mutual respect, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, and national dignity," the Bangladesh foreign ministry said.
"Regrettably, Bangladesh's repeated requests to the Government of India for returning convicted criminal Hasina to Bangladesh under the Extradition Treaty signed between Bangladesh and India in 2013, has not yet elicited a response," it added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
