Former Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina has announced her intention to return from self-imposed exile in India around December, despite facing a death sentence in Bangladesh, where her Awami League party has been banned. The 78-year-old leader revealed plans to come back voluntarily with several senior party members to surrender before the courts and challenge the legal actions against them.
Hasina acknowledged the dangers involved, including the possibility of arrest or even death upon her return. Nevertheless, she expressed determination to go back to Bangladesh, citing ongoing repression of her party’s leaders and supporters. She poignantly stated, “If death comes, I want it to come on my own soil,” referring to Bangladesh, where her parents are buried and were killed.
Sheikh Hasina fled Bangladesh in 2024 after widespread protests ended her two decades of leadership across multiple terms. In her absence, a war-crimes tribunal sentenced her to death in November for ordering a deadly crackdown on a student-led uprising, charges she denies. Her return could intensify political divisions in the garment-exporting nation as the government in Dhaka seeks to stabilize the country following two years of turmoil. Meanwhile, it might also ease strained relations with India, which deteriorated after New Delhi granted her refuge. Bangladesh has repeatedly requested her extradition from India.
Hasina, who has previously responded to written questions but not given interviews during exile, stated she has not consulted any foreign government about her return. This marks the first time she has set a tentative timetable and declared her intention to surrender, along with other exiled Awami League leaders, including former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, who also faces a death sentence. The whereabouts of other party members remain unknown.
She noted that Bangladeshi authorities have been pressing India to extradite her, but she insists on returning on her own terms. Requests for comment from the Bangladesh government and India’s foreign ministry went unanswered. Earlier in April, India said it was reviewing Bangladesh’s extradition request and aimed to engage constructively with the new government to strengthen bilateral ties.
Once a champion of democracy, Hasina rose to prominence after the assassination of her father, a key independence leader, and much of her family in a military coup. She was credited with economic progress in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country of 170 million, but her long tenure drew accusations of suppressing dissent and weakening democratic institutions, which she denies. The crackdown that led to her downfall reportedly resulted in up to 1,400 deaths, a U.N. report.
“Cases have been filed against almost all of our leaders and workers, and many are in hiding,” Hasina said from her exile home in Delhi. She urged her supporters to return with her and surrender in court collectively. While she did not specify the exact date or court for surrender, she expressed confidence in the justice system, hoping to expose the court’s alleged unfairness.
Since her government was ousted, many Awami League members have faced arrests, legal challenges, and attacks. Hasina emphasized that democracy, voting rights, and political justice are not matters for secret negotiations. She also said she is not concerned about imprisonment, having been detained multiple times in the past, including after returning from exile in 1981 and during a military-backed caretaker government in 2007.
Her decision to flee this time was driven by threats to her life as hostile crowds approached her residence. She acknowledged that long-serving governments can make mistakes but insisted that the people have the right to judge their performance. Hasina has been conducting online meetings covering 125 of Bangladesh’s 300 parliamentary constituencies to reorganize the Awami League. Despite her conviction barring her from elections, she questioned the rationale behind banning the party, asserting that the people should decide its fate.
