Following the deaths of approximately 300 anti-government protesters and widespread public resistance, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was forced to resign and flee the country, an outcome that many had anticipated.
She departed from Dhaka in a military helicopter to Agartala, India, and then landed at the Indian Air Force’s Hindon Airbase near Delhi in a military aircraft.
It is still unclear whether she will stay in India permanently or move to another country after a few days.
According to some reports, given the highly tense and volatile situation in Dhaka, she has decided to seek asylum in the United Kingdom, but this has yet to be confirmed. However, considering the current conditions in Bangladesh, the Indian establishment would prefer her to seek refuge in another country.
There are also reports suggesting that she might stay in Delhi for a few days before moving elsewhere.
As her aircraft entered Indian airspace, millions of protesters in Dhaka and other cities across the country were celebrating her escape.
The military has taken command of the country’s administration, and the Chief of Armed Forces, General Waqar Azam, is in talks with all political parties to form an interim government.
After Sheikh Hasina arrived in Delhi, a crucial meeting on the situation in Bangladesh took place at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence, attended by India’s Foreign Minister, Defense Minister, Home Minister, Finance Minister, and National Security Advisor.
When former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina arrived at Hindon Airbase in India, she was welcomed by India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and senior officials from the Ministry of External Affairs.
India has been Sheikh Hasina’s closest ally, and since Bangladesh’s inception in 1971, the Awami League Party has enjoyed India’s full support. In a TV interview, former Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla stated that Sheikh Hasina’s relationships extend beyond the government to India’s political leadership as well.
In 1975, when her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other family members were assassinated, Sheikh Hasina was in Europe. From there, she came to Delhi and lived there for several years.
At that time, her husband, a scientist, was also given a job at a government institution. Sheikh Hasina’s husband, Dr. Wazed Miah, was a scientist who had been part of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and served as the chief scientist at the Karachi Nuclear Plant before the fall of Dhaka. However, after the situation deteriorated, his security clearance was revoked.
Sheikh Hasina has served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh for about 21 years, holding the position continuously for the past 16 years. After the Modi government came to power, she signed a water-sharing agreement with India, opened new trade routes, exchanged Bangladeshi enclaves, and signed a peace accord.
Dr. Sree Radha Dutta, a professor of South Asian affairs at OP Jindal University, states that before Sheikh Hasina, “the government of BNP’s Khaleda Zia in Bangladesh encouraged extremist forces, leading many organizations to resort to violence. India also came under the influence of these extremists’ violent activities, and relations with Khaleda Zia’s government deteriorated. However, under Sheikh Hasina’s rule, the ties between the two countries became very deep.”
Bangladeshi economist Muhammad Yunus recently criticized India’s silence on the ongoing protests in Bangladesh in an interview with Indian media. He said, “Two-thirds of Bangladesh’s population consists of youth, and due to the end of democratic freedom in the country, these two-thirds of young people have never been able to vote. The unrest spreading in Bangladesh will also impact India.”
Political analyst Subhajeet Bagchi, based in Kolkata, says that “the biggest mistake of India’s foreign policy was placing all its bets on Sheikh Hasina and her party, the Awami League, in Bangladesh. Due to intense opposition to Sheikh Hasina, the Indian establishment severed ties with the opposition BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.”
Bagchi says, “Hasina’s party was rapidly becoming unpopular among the public, democratic institutions were being eroded, and the public’s hatred for the government was growing. Since India was the biggest supporter of Sheikh Hasina, the public in Bangladesh also developed a strong dislike for India.”
He adds, “India also convinced the US, the UK, and the world that if the Awami League lost, Bangladesh would fall into the hands of extremists.”
“India did not anticipate that public hatred for Sheikh Hasina’s authoritarian government would reach such an extent that she would have to leave office and flee the country. This is a major shock for India, similar to how Afghanistan proved to be for the Americans.”
Efforts are now underway to form an interim government in Bangladesh. Due to intense public opposition, it is uncertain whether the Awami League will be included in this new government.
Subhajeet Bagchi believes that India will now start talking with BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami leaders. He says, “If India can engage with the Taliban government in Afghanistan, then why should it have difficulty establishing relations with BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami?”
“The other important point is that the Awami League, like Jamaat-e-Islami, is a nationwide organized party with millions of members spread across the country. Although there is current unrest against it, if the opposition fails to perform well after coming to power, the Awami League’s return cannot be ruled out in the future.”
Professor Sree Radha Dutta says, “India’s ties with Bangladesh are so deep, and its dependence on India is so significant that neither BNP nor Jamaat-e-Islami can afford to damage relations with India. Trade relations have grown to the extent that no government would want strained ties. Bangladesh’s textile industry relies heavily on raw materials from India.”
China has established significant influence in South Asia over the past few years.
Subhajeet Bagchi says, “China and the US are in a race to dominate the Indian Ocean. The US is trying to establish a naval base in the region, and China will secure a base for its naval and warships through Myanmar.”
He says, “India was trying to counter China with Sheikh Hasina’s help. Her departure will increase India’s concerns in this regard.”
It is worth noting that earlier this year, Sheikh Hasina cut short her visit to China and, upon returning, handed the responsibility of completing the important Teesta Master Plan development project to India instead of China.
After returning from her China visit, Sheikh Hasina told journalists that both India and China were interested in the Teesta project, but she wanted India to complete it.
India is currently treading cautiously. Despite the ongoing protests and fatalities in Dhaka, the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government, and her arrival in India, the government has not yet issued any statement.
How did Sheikh Hasina become a powerful leader?
Sheikh Hasina was born in East Bengal in 1947, and politics was in her blood.
She is the daughter of nationalist leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who is regarded as the “Father of the Nation” in Bangladesh. Under his leadership, Bangladesh gained independence from Pakistan, and he became the country’s first president in 1971.
Since then, Sheikh Hasina established herself as a student leader at Dhaka University.
In 1975, a military coup resulted in the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and several members of his family. Only Sheikh Hasina and her younger sister survived the attack because they were not in the country at that time.
During this period, she lived in exile in India and returned to Bangladesh in 1981, where she was appointed the leader of her father’s party, the Awami League.
Sheikh Hasina protested for democracy alongside other political parties during General Hussein Muhammad Ershad’s military government.
This movement catapulted her to national prominence, making her a national leader.
She became the Prime Minister for the first time in 1996. During this time, she signed a water-sharing deal with India and a peace accord with insurgents in the southeastern regions.
However, her government faced accusations of corruption and criticism for its close ties with India.
In 2001, she lost the election to her former ally, Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, and had to step down as Prime Minister.
For nearly three decades, these two women dominated Bangladeshi politics and were referred to as the “battling Begums.”
Political analysts believe that their rivalry led to bombings, disappearances, and extrajudicial killings becoming common in the country.
In 2009, an interim government held elections, and Sheikh Hasina was re-elected as Prime Minister.
Throughout her political journey, Sheikh Hasina was frequently arrested and targeted in attacks as an opposition leader. In one such attack in 2004, her vocal cords were affected.
She faced attempts to exile her and court cases for alleged corruption.
Bangladesh was once considered one of the world’s poorest countries, but since 2009, the economy has improved under Sheikh Hasina’s leadership.
Today, Bangladesh is one of the fastest-growing economies in the region, with a growth rate surpassing India’s.
According to the World Bank, nearly 25 million people have risen above the poverty line in the past decade.
The garment industry has seen the most significant growth, with Bangladeshi-made clothing reaching markets in Europe, North America, and Asia.
Using national wealth, loans, and foreign assistance, Sheikh Hasina launched major development projects, including the $2.9 billion Padma Bridge.
The recent violent protests were perhaps the biggest challenge of Sheikh Hasina’s political career, and the previous elections in the country were also marred by controversy.
The elections brought Sheikh Hasina’s party to power for the fourth consecutive term.
Calls for her resignation persisted, but Sheikh Hasina resisted. She labeled the protesters as “terrorists” and appealed for them to be dealt with “with an iron hand.”
In Bangladesh, government jobs are highly valued due
#Bangladesh #Hasinawajid #2024bangladesh
