Raju Mansukhani
The dramatic life of Bangladesh former Prime Minister’s continues to unfold, mirroring the roller-coaster ride of South Asia’s political dynasties since 1947
While the past invariably catches up in unexpected ways, and revolutions promising social-political liberation often devour its own heroes and children, the unfolding history of Bangladesh is yet another testimony of the traumas unleashed by the Partition of 1947 which divided the vast subcontinent into India, Pakistan and East Pakistan. Sheikh Hasina’s dramatic flight from Dhaka on 5 August 2024 will remain a defining though traumatic moment in south-east Asian politics when a once-loved and highly respected Prime Minister had to flee for her life as the opposition rose against her, with religious leaders, students and citizens taking to the streets against her dictatorial regime.
As Bangladesh’s longest-serving Prime Minister, who shaped the destiny of a new liberated country for twenty eventful years (from 1996 to 2001, and then 2009 to 2024), life and politics seem to have come a full circle for Sheikh Hasina. In 1975 after the assassination of her father ‘Bangabandhu’ Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, the President of Bangladesh, she had taken shelter in India from 1981 to 1986. Now almost four decades later, the bespectacled, dignified South Asian leader, is said to be seeking asylum not just in India, but UAE or Saudi Arabia among others.
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