Ousted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has announced that she will return to Bangladesh from India in December to surrender before a court, despite saying she faces the risk of arrest or even death upon her return.
In an hour-long telephone interview with Reuters, the 78-year-old former premier said she and senior leaders of the Awami League plan to return to Bangladesh around December to face legal proceedings, even though she has reportedly been sentenced to death in absentia and her party remains banned.
Hasina said she is fully aware that she could be arrested—or even killed—after returning, but insisted she wants to spend her final moments in her homeland.
“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.
The former prime minister fled to India in 2024 after a mass anti-government uprising forced her from power. She was later sentenced to death in absentia by Bangladesh’s war crimes tribunal over its crackdown on the student-led protests that ultimately led to her removal from office.
Hasina claimed the current Bangladeshi government has repeatedly asked India to extradite her, but said she would return voluntarily without the assistance of any foreign government.
She added that she is prepared to face the legal process and believes the public will judge for themselves whether the trial is conducted fairly once court proceedings begin.
The former premier also alleged that nearly all senior leaders and activists of the Awami League are facing criminal cases, forcing many into hiding. She said she continues to coordinate with party members through online meetings as the party works to reorganize.
Calling for the ban on the Awami League to be lifted, Hasina argued that while voters have the right to reject her party at the ballot box, excluding it from the political process is undemocratic.
Although she did not disclose the exact date of her return or specify which court she would appear before, this marks the first time Sheikh Hasina has publicly provided a timeline for returning to Bangladesh to face trial.