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‘God gives life, God will take...': Hasina on Bangladesh verdict today | Top points
While speaking about how her belongings were “looted” and “burned”, Sheikh Hasina said that “hooliganism” and “terrorism” do not make a “revolution”.
As Bangladesh braces for the much-anticipated verdict in the “crimes against humanity” trial of ousted PM Sheikh Hasina set for Monday, she said in a message to her supporters that “destroying” her party Awami League is not so easy as it “grew the soil and the people” and not “from the pocket of an illegal power grabber”.
She also said that the allegations made against her are false, and that Bangladesh's interim government caretaker and Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus seized power “illegally and unconstitutionally”.
Track live updates of Sheikh Hasina verdict here.
“They do not want the Awami League to engage in politics. They declare the Awami League banned. They do not want the Awami League to contest elections. They want to destroy this party by oppressing its leaders and activists. But this is not that easy. This Awami League grew from the soil and the people. It did not grow from the pocket of an illegal power grabber,” Hasina said in an audio message to her supporters.
“We achieved independence in exchange for the blood of millions of martyrs. Yet they have filed a case against me. You know that all the allegations brought against me are false,” she said further.
‘We accepted students’ demands'
Speaking on what happened during the students' protest in Bangladesh last year that brought down her government and forced her into exile in India, Hasina claimed her regime had accepted all of the students' demands.
"After accepting, suddenly we heard about a nine-point demand. We said, ‘Okay, we will consider that too.’ Then the one-point demand. What does this suggest? A state of anarchy in the country. Destroying the socio-economic development. And leading the country toward destruction," she said, adding that while the murder cases are against Awami League, it was Yunus and “his forces” who committed the murders.
‘Hooliganism, terrorism do not constitute revolution’
After Hasina's ouster, the protestors in Bangladesh stormed the presidential palace Ganabhaban and looted it, several visuals of which had emerged on social media last year.
While speaking about how her belongings “looted” and “burned”, Hasina said that “hooliganism” and “terrorism” do not make a “revolution”.
“Ganabhaban (President's residence) is not mine, it is governmental property. Yet they harbour so much resentment against it. So, have they started a revolution? What kind of revolution? Hooliganism, terrorism, and extremist activities do not constitute a revolution,” she said.
The former Bangladesh PM also said that she does not worry about such trials.
“God gave life; one day God will take it away. But I am working for the people of the country and will continue to work,” she said.
Tensions flare in Bangladesh ahead of Hasina verdict
A day ahead of the big verdict, Bangladesh was hit by violence as several crude bombs exploded in their Bangladesh capital Dhaka on Sunday.
Hasina is facing the trial to determine whether she ordered a deadly crackdown on students during last year's uprising which eventually led to her ouster and if convicted, she faces possibility of a death penalty.
However, Hasina has denied all charges against her and maintained that she is innocent. After her ouster in August 2024, Hasina fled to India and has remained here since. She also defied court orders which demanded her to come back from India to attend her trial.
‘There will be confrontations’
A day ahead of the ruling on Sheikh Hasina's alleged crimes against humanity, her son and political advisor Sajeeb Wazed said on Sunday that the supporters of their party Awami League would not let national elections to be conducted in February if the ban on their party is not lifted. He even hinted that the protests by the party supporters could even turn violent.
Wazed also said that he believes his mother would be convicted.
“We know exactly what the verdict is going to be. They're televising it. They're going to convict her, and they'll probably sentence her to death…What can they do to my mother? My mother is safe in India. India is giving her full security,” said Wazed, who lives in Washington DC, reported news agency Reuters.
"We will not allow elections without the Awami League to go ahead…Our protests are going to get stronger and stronger, and we will do whatever it takes. Unless the international community does something, eventually there's probably going to be violence in Bangladesh before these elections ... there's going to be confrontations,” he said.
