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'Want to put Bangladesh on right track': Sheikh Hasina announces December return
Sheikh Hasina said that her return was driven not by a desire for power, but by a sense of duty towards the people.
Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday said she will return to the country in December, nearly two years after she fled Dhaka following anti-government protests.
In her first public address since then, Hasina acknowledged that she could be arrested or even killed upon her arrival in Dhaka, but asserted that such possibilities would not stop her from returning.
"I may be sent to prison or be killed, but fear cannot decide my duty to the people. I lost my family in 1975 and spent six years in exile. I am not worried about my own future, but about the future of Bangladesh."
Hasina said she wants to return to Bangladesh to help restore the country to the path of development and ensure its people have security, prosperity, peace and greater economic opportunities. She stressed that her return was driven not by a desire for power, but by a sense of duty towards the people.
"I want to return because the people of Bangladesh deserve security, development, prosperity and peace. They deserve the state they dreamed of and an economy that gives them opportunities. My return is not about power; it is about putting Bangladesh back on the right track. I want to return to stand beside the people and help improve their lives. The people are the source of all power," Hasina said.
Hasina added that although she was forced away from her country, she was “never separated” from her people.
“For the last two years, I watched my beloved Bangladesh suffer...This is not the Bangladesh we built; this is not the Bangladesh for which 3 million people sacrificed their lives in 1971,” she told the gathering.
'2024 student protests were ‘not peaceful’: Hasina
The ousted leader also claimed that the July-August 2024 agitation that led to the fall of her government was "not a peaceful student movement" but a coordinated campaign that used students as a cover for violence and regime change.
“Let me tell you the truth about July-August 2024. It was not a peaceful student movement. It was not a spontaneous student protest,” she said.
Questioning the criticism of the police response, Hasina said the state had a responsibility to protect lives and public property.
“When police and government buildings are burnt and looted, does the state have no duty to protect life and property?” she asked.
The former prime minister said she constituted a judicial inquiry commission on July 18, 2024, to investigate the violence and document every casualty.
“The purpose was clear, every casualty was to be noted,” she said.
‘India has always been a great friend’
Hasina also praised Bangladesh's relationship with India, describing the neighbouring country as a "great friend."
Responding to a question on whether the Indian government was aware of her plans to return to Bangladesh, her son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy said, "The news of her wanting to go back has made international headlines, so everyone in India would also know."
Speaking about Hasina's stay in India over the past two years, he said she has been treated with the dignity and security accorded to a head of government.
"India is treating her like a head of state, treating her very well. She is staying here with full security as a head of state. Prime Minister Modi's government has shown her the utmost respect," he said.
