Former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina is reportedly planning to return to Bangladesh in December and surrender before authorities, even as she says she faces threats to her life.
Hasina’s government fell after a student-led uprising in 2024, following which she took refuge in India. Since then, both the interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus and the current government headed by Tariq Rahman have repeatedly sought her handover.
According to the report, Hasina—who has been removed from office and sentenced to death in Bangladesh—intends to return along with senior party colleagues. She is also said to be planning to appear in court voluntarily with members of the Awami League, which is currently banned in the country.
Hasina, who served as prime minister for about 20 years across multiple terms, was sentenced to death by a court last November over allegations that she ordered a brutal crackdown on student protests. While in exile, she has denied the accusations.
Announcing her plan to return, she was quoted as saying she could be arrested and might even be killed, but that she must go back. She also said her party leaders and workers are facing severe repression, and that if death comes, it should be on her own soil where her parents are buried and where their blood was shed.
