Dhaka: Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has lashed out at the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, insisting she fled the country last year only because her life was in grave danger.
In a fresh interview, the ousted leader rejected accusations that she ordered security forces to open fire on protesters, and declared she would not flinch even if handed a death sentence.
Hasina, who has been living in exile since August 2024, told The Independent that staying in Dhaka on 5 August would have endangered not just herself but everyone around her. “I remain committed to restoring democracy,” she said, accepting ultimate responsibility as a leader for what unfolded. She categorically denied giving any shoot-to-kill orders during the quota-reform protests that spiralled into a nationwide uprising. The violence, she argued, stemmed from a breakdown in discipline among ground-level forces. An independent probe into the initial killings had been launched under her administration, only for the Yunus government to shut it down later, she claimed.
On the prospect of capital punishment, Hasina was defiant. “If the International Crimes Tribunal sentences me to death, it will neither surprise nor frighten me,” she said, dismissing the court as a sham run by an unelected regime stacked with her political foes willing to go to any length to eliminate her. The student-led agitation began over job quotas but quickly snowballed, forcing Hasina to resign and seek refuge abroad. The chief prosecutor of the interim government has branded her the mastermind behind the deaths during the revolt.
Hasina’s remarks come amid escalating tensions between her supporters and the Yunus administration, which continues to pursue multiple cases against the veteran leader.