Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced on April 8 that she would soon return to the country, accusing interim government head Muhammad Yunus of turning Bangladesh into a “terrorist state.”
“God kept me alive for a reason, and the day will come when justice is served,” Hasina told her supporters, referring to the persecution faced by members of her party, the Awami League, since her ouster.
Criticising Yunus, Hasina stated, “He never cared for the people of Bangladesh. He gave out small loans at high interest rates while living luxuriously abroad. We failed to see his deceit back then, so we supported him. But the people gained nothing. He prospered at their expense and developed an insatiable thirst for power, which is now devastating Bangladesh.”
Hasina fled to India last year after a massive student uprising led to the downfall of her government. Her ouster was followed by the establishment of an interim government under Yunus. While Yunus has been in power for nearly eight months, Bangladesh is set to hold elections by the end of this year.
Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Yunus for the first time since Hasina fled the country. The 40-minute meeting took place on the sidelines of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral and Technical Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit, where Modi reiterated India’s support for a democratic, stable, peaceful, progressive, and inclusive Bangladesh. During the meeting, Yunus raised concerns about the extradition of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and border killings.
