Deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina appears to be facing narrowing political space in India as New Delhi seeks to improve relations with Dhaka and questions grow over the extent of support she can expect from Indian authorities.
Hasina joined a press conference virtually on 5 August with assistance from Indian authorities. But a planned press conference in New Delhi in mid-October did not take place, prompting speculation that India may be seeking to limit her political activities. The reasons for the event not going ahead, however, have not been independently confirmed.
Several senior Awami League leaders had earlier told TIMES that they were considering holding their next press conference in a city in the United States or Europe. They eventually organised an event at the National Press Club in Washington on Monday night, Bangladesh time, with Hasina joining virtually.
Her written statement and subsequent answers offered no firm confirmation of her previously indicated plan to return to Bangladesh in December. While she reiterated her intention to return, she did not specify a date. The reasons for the apparent change in her position remain unclear, although New Delhi’s efforts to improve ties with Dhaka may be a factor in the evolving political circumstances.
The Washington press conference also raised questions about the Awami League’s political credibility. Hasina’s son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, acknowledged that the 2018 and 2024 parliamentary elections were controversial. In discussing the 2018 election, he alleged that government agencies, including military intelligence, had intervened to ensure an Awami League victory.
Joy’s remarks could further undermine the party’s efforts to defend its record in office, as the conduct of both elections remains a major point of political controversy in Bangladesh.
Joy admits elections were controversial
Sajeeb Wazed Joy, son of Sheikh Hasina, admitted for the first time that the parliamentary elections held in 2018 and 2024 were controversial.
He made the admission during a press conference in the United States, where Hasina also joined virtually to reiterate her intention to return to Bangladesh, although she did not specify a date.
The press conference was organised by the Centre for USA-Bangladesh Relations.
Joy attended the event in person, while AL President Sheikh Hasina, who is staying in New Delhi since her ouster, joined via audio midway through the session.
Hasina fled to India on 5 August 2024 following a student-led mass uprising and deadly anti-government protests.
Although no representatives from major US media outlets attended the press conference, a correspondent from the international news agency AFP and journalists from several Indian newspapers were present.
During the press conference, a journalist from Newsmax asked Joy for his views on allegations of AL interference, as well as the arrest and harassment of opposition figures during the 2024 election.
In response, Joy agreed with the allegations and raised the issue of the 2018 election on his own initiative.
He said that while opinion polls ahead of the 2018 election had predicted a landslide victory for the Awami League, certain government agencies, including military intelligence, had done whatever was necessary to ensure the party’s victory.
Joy said he had opposed these actions by government agencies, but they had paid no heed.
No firm date for return
In her formal address, Hasina alleged that Bangladesh currently lacked democracy, human rights, freedom of speech, judicial independence and minority rights, and sought US support to restore them.
She did not mention her return to Bangladesh during her formal address. However, responding later to a question from an India Today journalist, who noted her earlier announcement that she would return in December and asked whether she feared for her life, Hasina said she had faced attacks, imprisonment and oppression at various times and no longer feared them.
Hasina added that she would return to the country to stand beside distressed people and persecuted AL workers.
Tensions with Washington
Responding to a question about the deterioration of relations between the United States and the Awami League, Joy alleged that several officials at the US embassy in Dhaka had contributed to the situation by repeatedly providing incorrect information to the US government.
At the beginning of his response, he disclosed for the first time that he was a US citizen.
Joy also spoke about the roles played by the US embassy, the International Republican Institute and the United States Agency for International Development in building a movement against the AL government.
