(Photo) Curtesy : Reuters
NEW DELHI: Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who was sentenced to death back home by a tribunal, has said that she and senior leaders of her now-outlawed Awami League plan to return from exile in India around December and surrender before the courts. Hasina added that she faced a risk to her life but would nevertheless return to her home country.
Hasina has been living in India since August 5, 2024, when she had to leave Bangladesh after weeks of anti-government protests, backed by Islamist elements. The protests turned deadly, and she was advised by the army chief to leave Bangladesh for her own safety.
She was sentenced to death in absentia by Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal in November 2025 over her alleged role in the crackdown on the 2024 student-led protests. She has denied the charges.
In an interview with news agency Reuters, Hasina said she was prepared to be arrested or even killed but wanted to return to her homeland.
“They may arrest me on my return, they may even kill me,” the 78-year-old leader said.
“Still, I have to go. My party leaders and workers are being subjected to tremendous repression. If death comes, I want it to come on my own soil, where my parents are buried and where their blood was shed,” Hasina added.
