Hours before former Bangladesh Prime Minster Sheikh Hasina is expected to address a virtual media conference from her high-security hideout in Delhi; s senior BNP leader and a Minister in the Tarique Rahman government, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, said the Awami League chief is "not brave enough to return" to Dhaka.
"I think this is a political stunt by Hasina. If she considers what will happen after her return, she may think twice. She will be arrested as soon as she arrives," Fakhrul said in an interview with Dhaka-based premier daily 'The Daily Star'.
"She (Hasina) has already been sentenced to death, and there is a possibility that the sentence will be carried out. I do not think she is brave enough to return."
His remarks came less than 24 hours before, Sheikh Hasina and her son Sajeeb Ahmed Wazed Joy and other Awami League leaders are expected to address a virtual media conference. As it is reports suggest, inclusion of a few controversial names ... "expected to be present during the conference has left many quarters surprised if not anguished".
In terms of diplomacy, Bangladesh has already sought India’s cooperation to ensure that deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, or "any individual" associated with the Awami League, cannot use Indian territory to deliver political speeches or engage in activities aimed at creating instability in Bangladesh.
However, an invitation by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of South Asia (FCC South Asia) in New Delhi is already in circulation. The event has assumed significance as a few months back, Sheikh Hasina has stated that she would be keen to visit (or return) to Bangladesh by December 2026.
In November 2025, she was served with a death sentence. Ever since Hasina's ouster from Aug 5, 024, the bilateral relations between Dhaka and New Delhi have remained strained. However, after the installation of BNP regime in Feb 2026, there have been some improvements in ties.
Trade restrictions remain in place on both sides, while several key bilateral issues, including water-sharing agreements, remain unresolved.
In December 2024, a Bangladeshi national was arrested on charges of illegally living in Kolkata city on the basis of fake documents for the past one year, Kolkata police has said.
An Aadhaar card and a PAN card, both issued using forged documents, were seized from the accused, identified as Mohammed Abidur Rahman, 37, a resident of Narail district in Bangladesh. The police claimed Rahman had possible links with a former Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Salim Matabbar, a resident of Bangladesh who was arrested last month for illegal stay in India,
India has already distanced itself from the Hasina's proposed media interaction.
"The interaction you refer to is being organised by a private media entity. The government has no involvement whatsoever in it, neither does it endorse any views that may be expressed at the forum," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
He was answering a question on Hasina's plan during his bi-weekly media briefing.
Awami League leaders including Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel and Shakib Al Hasan are likely to speak at the conference.
ends
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