Saima Wazed Putul, daughter of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, is set to join the Awami League Presidium, the party’s highest policymaking body, as part of an organisational restructuring process more than two years after the party’s ouster from power.
Senior party leaders said Hasina is moving to reorganise the Awami League amid discussions over her possible return to Bangladesh and the party’s future leadership.
Putul is at the centre of the process, with leaders saying steps have begun to nominate her to the Presidium. The nomination could be finalised this month, they said.
A meeting of the party’s central executive committee has been called for Friday as part of the restructuring process.
The meeting was initially planned as an in-person gathering in New Delhi, but party leaders decided on Thursday evening to hold it virtually instead.
Putul is not the only name under consideration. The party is also discussing the inclusion of one leader from Chattogram division and another from Barishal division in the Presidium.
Under the Awami League constitution, the party president nominates Presidium members based on decisions of the council or central executive committee.
Several leaders said Putul’s nomination may not be finalised at Friday’s meeting. If the executive committee authorises Hasina, as party president, to make the decision, she could consult family members and senior party leaders on 22 September before finalising the nomination.
The party had initially planned to bring central leaders together physically in India but changed the plan at the last moment.
One reason was that not all central committee members are currently in India. Several leaders based in different Indian states had already travelled to Delhi after coming to know about the proposed meeting, while concerns over seasonal influenza were also cited.
Awami League Presidium Member Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya confirmed to TIMES on Thursday evening that they had reached Delhi.
Other leaders currently in Delhi include Presidium members Jahangir Kabir Nanak and AHM Khairuzzaman Liton.
Joint general secretaries Mahbubul Alam Hanif and AFM Bahauddin Nasim are also there, along with organising secretaries BM Mozammel Haque, SM Kamal Hossain, Mirza Azam, Shafiul Alam Chowdhury Nadel and Sujit Roy Nandi.
Others include Finance and Planning Affairs Secretary Waseqa Ayesha Khan, Law Affairs Secretary Nazibullah Hiru, Information and Research Affairs Secretary Selim Mahmud, Office Secretary Biplob Barua, Deputy Office Secretary Sayem Khan, Liberation War Affairs Secretary Mrinal Kanti Das, Cultural Affairs Secretary Asim Kumar Ukil and former organising secretary Mohibul Hasan Chowdhoury Nowfel.
A central committee member said party leaders had been instructed not to disclose details of Awami League activities in Delhi due to various bilateral issues between Bangladesh and India.
“There could be strategic considerations behind this as well,” the leader said.
The prospect of Putul entering the party’s top leadership has revived questions over succession that had emerged while Hasina was in power.
Hasina left Bangladesh for India with her sister Sheikh Rehana after her government was ousted in the mass uprising on 5 August 2024.
Putul was already based in New Delhi while working for the World Health Organization (WHO), but she is no longer in that position.
Hasina has announced that she intends to return to Bangladesh in December and face legal proceedings.
The possibility of her return and facing legal action has also triggered discussions within the party over who would lead the organisation if Hasina is imprisoned.
Against this backdrop, senior leaders said discussions have intensified over reorganising the Awami League and bringing Putul into active politics.
The leaders claimed that Putul’s potential political role was a key reason behind her departure from the WHO.
