Ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s vow to return to Bangladesh despite facing a death sentence has raised the prospect of a dramatic comeback for her and the Awami League.
Her potential return could revive the rivalry between the banned party and the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), while curbing further gains for Islamist political forces, according to analysts.
Hasina, who has been living in India since her government was toppled by a student-led protest movement nearly two years ago, has said she plans to return home in December even if she is arrested or killed.
The 78-year-old was sentenced to death in November after a tribunal found her guilty of incitement, issuing kill orders and failing to stop atrocities linked to the protest movement. Up to 1,400 people were killed in clashes with security forces.
In an interview with This Week in Asia just days before the verdict, Hasina expressed regret over the “needless” bloodshed but denied ordering security forces to fire on protesters. She also accused the previous interim government of using her trial to sideline the Awami League.
Bangladesh’s current prime minister, Tarique Rahman, took power after his BNP won a landslide victory February’s general election. Jamaat-e-Islami, the country’s largest Islamist political party, secured the second-most seats.
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