By Tanmay 
Sheikh Hasina Return: In an exclusive interview, former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina vows to return to the country soon, speaks on Awami League ban and India-Bangladesh relations.
New Delhi, May 18: In an exclusive Sheikh Hasina interview, the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh has firmly stated that she will return to her country soon.
Following the BNP’s rise to power in Bangladesh, the Modi government has turned a new page in bilateral ties. However, Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman reiterated the demand for the extradition of Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal during his recent visit to New Delhi.
Sources in India’s Ministry of External Affairs and Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that there are currently no plans to send Sheikh Hasina back.
Sheikh Hasina Return: “I Will Return With My Head Held High”
Recalling her historic return to Bangladesh on May 17, 1981 after six years in exile, Sheikh Hasina said exactly 45 years later:
“Nineteen attempts have been made on my life. On August 21, 2004, a conspiracy was hatched to annihilate my party through a grenade attack. Yet, they could not stop us. Since the Almighty has kept me alive, I will soon return to the soil of Bangladesh. I will return with my head held high, and with the pride of having restored a democratic environment to the country.”
Despite the current Awami League ban, Sheikh Hasina expressed strong confidence in her party’s future.
“Even after the assassination of Bangabandhu and his entire family, the ruling regime tried its best to destroy the Awami League. Yet the party emerged even stronger.”
Awami League Still Strong
The former Prime Minister highlighted the deep support the party continues to enjoy inside Bangladesh:
“We have millions of supporters and hundreds of thousands of leaders and activists still present within the country. The Awami League resides in the hearts and sentiments of the people. Our return is inevitable — it is merely a matter of time. We will return more organized and more powerful than ever before.”
She also mentioned that preparations for the party’s comeback are quietly underway.
PM Modi Receives Sweden’s Highest Honour in Gothenburg
Leaders in Exile
Many senior Awami League leaders and former ministers are currently staying in India, particularly in Kolkata. Sheikh Hasina explained:
“No one has left the country voluntarily. More than six hundred party leaders and activists have been brutally killed. One hundred and fifty thousand have been arrested on fabricated charges.”
She said these leaders are actively raising awareness about the situation in Bangladesh with international human rights organizations and will return once a proper democratic environment is restored.
On India-Bangladesh Relations
Sheikh Hasina also addressed criticism that her government was overly close to India. She strongly rejected these claims and listed key achievements:
- The 1996 Ganges Water Treaty
- The 2014 Maritime Boundary resolution that added nearly 20,000 square kilometers to Bangladesh
- The 2015 Land Boundary Agreement
- The India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline
“Let the BNP tell us — which of these steps was against the national interest? In foreign policy, the Awami League has always put the interests of the people of Bangladesh first,” she said.
তন্ময় ‘প্রাইমইনসাইট’ (PrimeInsight)-এর প্রতিষ্ঠাতা ও প্রধান লেখক। কলকাতা-ভিত্তিক একজন উৎসাহী ব্লগার ও স্বতন্ত্র ভাষ্যকার হিসেবে তিনি গুরুত্বপূর্ণ বিষয়গুলোর ওপর তীক্ষ্ণ ও বাস্তবসম্মত দৃষ্টিভঙ্গি তুলে ধরেন।
সঙ্গীত, সমসাময়িক ঘটনাপ্রবাহ এবং রাজনীতি—এই ক্ষেত্রগুলোতে গভীর জ্ঞানের অধিকারী ইন্দ্রজিৎ তাঁর লেখায় সাংস্কৃতিক উপলব্ধির সাথে রাজনৈতিক বিশ্লেষণের সমন্বয় ঘটান। জাতীয় ও বৈশ্বিক ঘটনাবলির সাথে সংযোগ বজায় রাখার পাশাপাশি তাঁর লেখায় কলকাতার বৌদ্ধিক ও শৈল্পিক সত্তার প্রতিফলনও ফুটে ওঠে।