Top News

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday delivered her first public speech in 2024, exactly one year after she was ousted from power on August 5. At the event, organized by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of South Asia in New Delhi, Sheikh Hasina outlined her future agenda.

In her 25-minute audio speech, she said, “I know they can put me in jail or even kill me, but I will still return to Bangladesh in December. The people’s support is very important to me. The death penalty, false cases, and sham trials will not deter me. The legal proceedings against me are illegal, unconstitutional, and politically motivated.”

‘I did not leave Bangladesh of my own free will’

Hasina also said that she did not leave Bangladesh voluntarily. She had only 30 to 40 minutes to leave when protesters marched toward the Prime Minister’s residence. She did not know she was leaving the country at the time. She was preparing to go to her native village, Tungipara, but circumstances forced her to leave.

However, Sheikh Hasina broke down at the very beginning of her virtual address. With great difficulty, she composed herself and said, “Today I am speaking not only as a former Prime Minister but also as the daughter of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.” Hasina became emotional while remembering her family members, most of whom were assassinated along with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in Dhaka in 1975. She said that this was not a peaceful movement.

The student movement in 2024 was by no means peaceful.

Former Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina said, “For the past two years, I have seen my beloved Bangladesh grapple with difficulties. This is not the Bangladesh we created. This is not the Bangladesh for which 3 million people gave their lives in 1971. I want to begin by addressing the truth of July and August 2024. This was not a peaceful student movement. From the beginning, my government tried to resolve this issue peacefully through dialogue, legal process, and patience. But under the guise of reform, some organized groups were trying to turn the students’ demands into a violent political weapon.”

‘I was never separated from my people’

Sheikh Hasina said, “I am away from my country, but I have never been separated from my people. My family and I fought for Bangladesh. This is not the Bangladesh for which 3 million people gave their lives.”

A well-planned conspiracy to change the government under the guise of student protests

Sheikh Hasina’s face was not shown when she addressed journalists, but only her voice was broadcast live. She alleged that the 2024 uprising that toppled her government was actually a “planned regime change plot” disguised as student protests. Genuine students were used and misled, but this was done by groups with vested interests. The issue was never about quotas. Rather, the plan was to incite people to change the government.

Yunus’ own words revealed the truth

According to Sheikh Hasina, Muhammad Yunus’ own words revealed the truth. He admitted that this was a well-planned and well-planned operation. The movement’s purpose was to seize power from the system elected through the ballot box.

Yunus protected the killers

Referring to former Bangladesh caretaker Muhammad Yunus, the former PM said that his government’s decision to grant indemnity to the killers of policemen reveals their true motives. “I initiated an investigation into this case, but Muhammad Yunus’s ‘illegal interim government’ stopped it. If they weren’t afraid, why didn’t they let the truth come out?” Hasina said.

Minority community members are being attacked

Sheikh Hasina said that in Bangladesh, members of minority communities, judges, cultural figures, and even rickshaw pullers are being targeted. Those who stand up for the liberation struggle are being attacked, while convicted militants are being released.

Address by Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy

Sheikh Hasina’s son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, alleged that the violence did not end even after Sheikh Hasina’s ouster. He claimed that the killings continued even after the August 2024 protests.

Allegations made – Bangladesh has become ‘another Pakistan’

He questioned the discrepancy between the number of deaths reported by the United Nations (UN) and the government figures, alleging that protesters were given immunity as part of an “indemnity” measure, and urged the international media to closely examine the violence that followed the ouster of power. He also alleged that Bangladesh had become “another Pakistan,” and said this development should be a cause for concern for India.