Hasina fled the country in 2024 after two decades in power, following a student-led uprising that resulted in at least 1,400 deaths. A war-crimes court subsequently sentenced her to death in absentia. Despite the risks, Hasina asserts that she must return to support members of her Awami League, who she claims are suffering under intense state repression. "If death comes, I want it to come on my own soil, where my parents are buried and where their blood was shed," she said during an interview from Delhi.
Her planned return threatens to intensify political instability in the garment-exporting nation, which is currently attempting to navigate a post-uprising transition. While Dhaka has repeatedly urged New Delhi to extradite the former leader, Hasina insists her decision to return is independent of any foreign government negotiations. She remains defiant regarding the legitimacy of the proceedings against her, framing her surrender as an opportunity to expose what she characterizes as a farcical judicial process. Although she faces potential imprisonment, she maintains that her party, the Awami League, should not be banned and that the final judgment of her long tenure belongs to the Bangladeshi people.
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