Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule as Bangladesh’s Prime Minister ended in chaos on August 5th, 2024, as she left the country after she failed to quell deadly protests against her government since July. Millions of Bangladeshis took to the streets, waving flags, and celebrating the moment.
Sheikh Hasina, once a popular leader, is now facing life in exile. But, this is not the first time that she has faced massive adversities. She is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, who took on the military might of Pakistan and launched a freedom movement in the then East Pakistan.
He was instrumental in forming the Awami League, which came to power after Bangladesh was formed after the India-Pakistan War of 1971. He was assassinated on August 15th, 1975, and the military took over. Eighteen people, including members of his family, were killed. However, Ms. Hasina and her sister survived.
In 1987, Ms. Hasina joined hands with Khaleda Zia to take on military ruler Mohammed Ershad and bring democracy to Bangladesh. Ms. Zia is the wife of Bangladeshi military officer and former ruler Ziaur Rahman who was assassinated in 1981. By 1990, the Hasina-Khaleda duo mobilised lakhs of people in Dhaka, and forced Ershad to resign on December 4, 1990. Elections were held in February 1991 and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, headed by Ms. Zia, won the election and Ms. Hasina became the main opposition leader.
She became the prime minister in 1996 and returned to power in 2008. In her long tenure, which lasted a little more than fifteen years, she focused on the economy and helped the garment and textile industries flourish. Poverty decreased and human development outcomes improved along many dimensions. However, Bangladesh’s economy was hit hard by the Covid pandemic. It suffered a severe dollar shortage, limiting its ability to import goods, pushing inflation higher. Economic growth slowed, and unemployment increased.
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Bangladesh saw several protests and riots over the decades, but Hasina’s government suppressed them. The Government also cracked down on the Opposition. Ms. Zia was put under house arrest ahead of the 2014 elections, which led to most Opposition parties boycotting the polls. Ms. Hasina won 234 seats in that election.
In 2018, Ms. Zia was sentenced to 5 years in jail in a corruption case. It was later extended to ten years. She was barred from contesting polls due to this conviction and Hasina won again, securing 96% of the vote. She secured a fourth straight term in 2024, but the opposition boycotted these polls. In fact, several countries, including the US and the UK, raised concerns about the conduct of these elections.
Ms. Hasina was challenged once again – this time it was students who demanded a controversial quota given to the children of freedom fighters to be abolished. They openly asked her to step down. The Supreme Court of Bangladesh partially scrapped the quotas, but that failed to quell the protests. With this, she faces a life in exile again.
Script and production: V Nivedita
Voiceover: Sharmada Venkatasubramanian
