Daijiworld Media Network - Dhaka

Dhaka, Jul 10: Ousted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said she plans to return to Bangladesh in December and surrender before the courts despite being sentenced to death, according to an interview with Reuters.

Hasina said she and senior leaders of the banned Awami League would voluntarily return to the country and face the legal process.

The former prime minister was forced to leave Bangladesh in 2024 after weeks of student-led protests escalated into a major political crisis, ending her two-decade rule.

In November, Bangladesh's war crimes tribunal sentenced the 78-year-old leader to death over allegations of ordering a deadly crackdown on anti-government protests. Hasina has denied the charges while living in exile.

Speaking to Reuters, Hasina acknowledged the possibility of being arrested or even killed upon her return.

"They may arrest me on my return, they may even kill me. Still, I have to go. My party leaders and workers are being subjected to tremendous 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.

Hasina said she had not informed the Bangladesh government about her planned return, adding that issues relating to democracy, voting rights, political rights of the Awami League and justice should not be handled through secret negotiations.

The former prime minister also said she was not concerned about being imprisoned, noting that she had been jailed several times in the past.

Recalling the events that led to her departure from Bangladesh, Hasina said she fled the country after receiving threats to her life as protesters advanced towards her official residence.
Reflecting on her tenure, she said no government is free from mistakes and maintained that it is for the people to judge its performance.

She also revealed that she has held online meetings covering 125 of Bangladesh's 300 parliamentary constituencies as part of efforts to reorganise the Awami League.

Questioning the ban on her party, Hasina said that if the Awami League had failed in governance, the people should be allowed to decide its political future through elections.