New Delhi: Two years to the day since she boarded a helicopter and fled Bangladesh as a mass uprising toppled her government, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made her first significant public media appearance on Wednesday and used the occasion to announce her intention to return to Bangladesh in December, knowing full well that arrest and the possibility of capital punishment await her on the other side of the border.
Speaking during a media interaction hosted by the Foreign Correspondents' Club of South Asia in New Delhi, Hasina said she remained determined to return despite facing the possibility of imprisonment or worse. Although she had been expected to appear by video, she delivered only an audio message from behind a blank screen. It was not immediately clear why she did not appear on camera, unlike several Awami League leaders and her son, who spoke earlier.
The event, titled "Sheikh Hasina's Homecoming," was chaired by FCC South Asia president Dr. Waiel Awwad and scheduled from 6 PM to 7:30 PM IST. Her son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, and other Awami League leaders, including former Education Minister Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel, appeared alongside her. Former cricketer and ex-Member of Parliament Shakib Al Hasan, former diplomat Aminul Hoque Polash, political analyst Abu Obaidha Arin, and Shah Md Bakhtiar, director of Bangladesh Human Rights Watch USA, also participated.
What She Said: The Key Statements
The address covered the full arc of Hasina's position, on the events of August 2024, on Bangladesh's current state, on her party, on India, and on her own fate.
On returning to Bangladesh, she was categorical. The former Prime Minister acknowledged that her return to Bangladesh, despite facing arrest and capital punishment, is aimed at restoration of democratic environment, freedom of expression, political rights and the rule of law.
She chose December specifically because of its significance to Bangladesh. December is the month in which Bangladesh celebrates Victory Day, marking the liberation of the country from Pakistan in 1971, a date chosen deliberately to frame her return as a patriotic act rather than a political one.
On her party, Hasina said a ban on her Awami League party should be lifted, challenging the new government of her rival Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
On India, she praised the country for its hospitality and friendship during the two years of her exile, a statement that carries diplomatic weight given the tension that her presence in New Delhi has created between India and Bangladesh.
On Bangladesh's economy, Hasina said Bangladesh's economy had deteriorated sharply since her removal from office, alleging that growth had slowed, investment and job creation had weakened, and that more than 20 million people had become unemployed, while economic gains made during her tenure were being reversed.
On her own state of mind, the full text of her speech, released publicly after the address, captured the tone with which she presented herself to the international press. She said: "I am not worried about my own future. I am worried about the future of Bangladesh." She added: "I have spoken to mothers who lost their sons, workers who lost their jobs, families struggling to buy essential goods, women living with humiliation and fear, and young people who no longer see a future in their own country. Leaders and activists of Awami League have been forced into hiding. Fear has entered homes, workplaces and campuses. This is not the Bangladesh we built."
On the events of 2024, she did not accept the characterisation of the uprising as a peaceful student movement. She said: "A great falsehood has been repeated before the world: that the movement was only a peaceful student movement. That is not the truth. From the beginning, my government tried to resolve the issue peacefully through dialogue, legal process and patience. But behind the language of reform, organised groups were working to turn students' demands into a violent political instrument."
Her Son's Statement Before the Address
Before Hasina's audio address, her son and former ICT adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy spoke at the event. He described the August 5 incident as "a solemn reminder" of how Bangladesh descended into political instability and said that the Bangladesh Awami League would continue working to restore democracy, peace and development.
He said: "History has repeatedly shown that the people of this country have stood firmly for democracy, development, secular values, and national progress. Bangladesh Awami League will continue to work alongside the people to restore the path of democracy, peace, development, and prosperity."
The Legal Reality She Returns To
The stakes of Hasina's announced December return are not theoretical. Bangladesh Law Minister M Asaduzzaman has made it clear that Hasina would likely be arrested immediately upon return.
Hasina is facing a death sentence from a tribunal in Dhaka over her alleged role in ordering lethal force during the 2024 crackdown on protesters. The UN has stated that the crackdown may have resulted in as many as 1,400 deaths. She has denied all charges, calling the trials politically motivated.
Following the February 2026 general election, a government led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party under Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has been established. This administration has initiated legal proceedings against various leaders from Hasina's Awami League party, which is currently facing a ban on political activities under anti-terrorism legislation pending ongoing court cases.
The government has declared August 5 a public holiday in honour of those who died in the uprising. The day is officially designated "July Mass Uprising Day." Bangladesh on the same day barred local media from covering Hasina's statements, an instruction to domestic news outlets not to broadcast or publish the content of her address.
India's Position and Bangladesh's Concerns
India, where Hasina has been living since August 2024, was careful to distance itself formally from the event while taking no action to prevent it.
India's Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: "The interaction you refer to is being organised by a private media entity. The government has no involvement whatsoever in it. Neither does it endorse any views that may be expressed at the forum." New Delhi, which has allowed her to remain and resisted attempts to extradite her to Bangladesh, denied any role in planning the virtual speech.
Bangladesh had conveyed its concerns to India over Hasina's address, stating that the event could adversely affect the recent improvement in bilateral ties. The issue figured during a meeting between Bangladesh's Foreign Affairs Adviser Humayun Kabir and India's new High Commissioner.
The diplomatic tension between Dhaka and New Delhi over Hasina's continued presence in India has been a recurring feature of India-Bangladesh relations since August 2024. India has not extradited her despite Bangladesh's formal requests, and Hasina has used her time in Delhi to give multiple addresses and interviews, including a January 2026 audio address to the FCC South Asia in which she called former interim chief Muhammad Yunus a "murderous fascist."
Two Years in Exile: The Broader Context
August 5 marks two years since Hasina fled Bangladesh following a massive student-led uprising that led to the dismantling of the Awami League government after nearly 16 years in power. The protests, which initially erupted over a controversial quota system for government jobs, evolved into a nationwide anti-government movement.
Hasina opened her address on Wednesday with a reminder of her historical identity: "Today, I speak not only as someone who had the honour of serving Bangladesh five times as Prime Minister, but also as the daughter of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman."
Whether her announced December return will actually take place, whether it will be coordinated or spontaneous, and whether the BNP-led government will allow it to proceed without immediate detention, remain questions that no verified source can currently answer. What is certain is that she made a public and recorded commitment to return in December, during Victory Month, with full awareness of what awaits her at the border.
