Sheikh Hasina Vows Return to Bangladesh Despite Death Sentence
Sheikh Hasina Vows Return to Bangladesh Despite Death Sentence
Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has announced plans to return from exile in India next month, declaring she is prepared to face arrest or execution. Her decision follows a death sentence handed down by a special tribunal for her role in a deadly crackdown on protesters, a verdict she continues to reject as illegitimate.
Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has declared her intention to return from exile in India next month, stating she is prepared to face arrest or execution following a death sentence issued by a special tribunal. The announcement underscores the ongoing political volatility in Bangladesh and Hasina’s refusal to accept the legal consequences of her ouster.
Hasina fled to India in 2024 after mass student-led protests forced her resignation. In 2025, a Bangladeshi special tribunal convicted her of ordering a deadly crackdown on demonstrators, sentencing her to death for crimes against humanity. The United Nations reported that nearly 1,400 people were killed during the violence, with thousands more injured.
Hasina has consistently denied wrongdoing and challenged the legitimacy of the tribunal’s verdict through legal proceedings. Despite Bangladesh’s repeated requests for extradition, India has declined to hand her over.
"If death is my destiny, I would rather die on the soil of my own country, among my own people," Hasina told The Associated Press in an email response. "So, I will return to Bangladesh. That decision has not changed."
She acknowledged that she could face arrest upon arrival but stated she could not spend the rest of her life watching her supporters suffer from a distance. Hasina alleges that her Awami League party faces a severe crackdown, claiming at least 20,000 members have been killed since August 2024, with thousands more arrested, tortured, or forced into hiding.
The current government has dismissed these claims. Junior Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir stated that Bangladesh wants Hasina handed over under an existing extradition treaty with India. "We want Hasina to be handed over. She will be handed over. She is a terrorist. She is a fugitive," Kobir was quoted as saying by the United News of Bangladesh.
Following Hasina’s ouster, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus led an interim administration for 18 months. In February, Tarique Rahman, son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and a longtime political rival of Hasina, won a landslide election held under Yunus’ administration. Hasina’s Awami League party was barred from contesting the vote.
Global rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, have criticized Rahman’s government for assaults on civil and political rights, while minority groups report intimidation. The Yunus-led government has denied these allegations.
Hasina stated she does not expect foreign powers such as the United States or India to pressure Bangladesh for her safe return. "I value friendship and cooperation with all nations. That has always been our (Bangladesh's) foreign policy. But I do not need the blessing of a foreign power to return to my own country," she said.
The political landscape in Bangladesh remains uncertain as her party’s future is unclear. Senior leaders have been arrested or driven into exile, and the party remains banned. Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has died at age 80, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has opposed the death penalty for Hasina.
U.Jansen--BVZ
