"Awami League creates its own path with people" - Sheikh Hasina ::: Says will return Bangladesh "this year :::::: "verdict against me is not justice. It is part of an illegal, unconstitutional, and politically motivated process"

No democracy or rule of law in Bangladesh, says former PM Sheikh Hasina

"I was elected Prime Minister five times by the people's vote and worked for the country's unprecedented development. Almost my entire life has been tied to the people of Bangladesh, to the Awami League, to the democratic struggle, and to the development of Bangladesh. 

So, I want to say clearly: overcoming every obstacle and every conspiracy, I will return to my country this year," he told NDTV.

Sheikh Hasina dismissed doubts over whether the Awami League could stage a political comeback despite an ongoing crackdown on its leaders and workers under the successive governments of Muhammad Yunus and BNP’s Tarique Rahman.  

In an unrelated development but marking a significance, Jamaat-e-Islami Nayeb-e-Ameer and Rangpur-2 MP, ATM Azharul Islam, today questioned whether the BNP regime was trying to rehabilitate Awami League.  

"You have called for banning Jamaat. Let me ask just one thing. Suppose we are banned. Who will fill that vacuum?” the senior Jamaat leader asked in what is seen as a clear reference to the Tarique Rahman-led BNP.  

Awami League marked its 77th Founding Day last Tuesday (June 23) in defiance of a nationwide ban. Dozens of its activists were arrested amid tight security, reports said adding, however in many places the AL workers celebrated the occasion and also staged demonstration.  

The Jamaat MP has further asked, “Will you (BNP) run the country alone? 

Do you want to establish a one-party rule? Who will fill that space? Are you trying to rehabilitate the Awami League? I believe you are trying to rehabilitate the Awami League.”

Jamaat leader 

 Sheikh Hasina in her response to a question said:  

"My return is not a question of personal ambition. It is tied to a far larger question: the political rights of the people of Bangladesh, the restoration of democracy, the rule of law, and the spirit of our Liberation War. 

I do not do politics for power. I do politics for the welfare of the people of Bangladesh and for the fulfilment of the dream of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, to build a Sonar Bangla."  

She also said:  

"I do not fear death. In 1975, I lost my parents, my brothers, and almost my entire family. On 21 August, there was an attempt to kill me with grenades. Many conspiracies have been hatched against me. But breaking through every web of conspiracy, I stood beside the people of Bangladesh. 

"I was elected Prime Minister five times by the people's vote and worked for the country's unprecedented development. Almost my entire life has been tied to the people of Bangladesh, to the Awami League, to the democratic struggle, and to the development of Bangladesh. 

"So, I want to say clearly: overcoming every obstacle and every conspiracy, I will return to my country this year."

ends