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The son of the former prime minister defended her record in power in a statement to the BBC
Published : 05 Aug 2024, 08:00 PM
Sheikh Hasina will not make a political comeback, says her son and former official adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy.
Speaking to Newshour on the BBC World Service, Joy said his mother had been considering resigning from Sunday and had left Bangladesh for her own safety at the insistence of her family.
“[Hasina was] so disappointed that after all her hard work, for a minority to rise up against her,” he said.
Joy also defended Hasina’s record in power, saying: “She has turned Bangladesh around. When she took over power it was considered a failing state. It was a poor country. Until today it was considered one of the rising tigers of Asia. She’s very disappointed.”
He also rejected accusations that the government had used excessive force in dealing with protests.
“You’ve had policemen beaten to death – 13 just yesterday. So what do you expect the police to do when mobs are beating people to death?”
What began as a movement to reform the quota system for government jobs has now turned into a mass movement that toppled the ruling Awami League government.
A massive response to the non-cooperation programme called by the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, the platform for the protesters, has seen Sheikh Hasina resign her premiership on Monday and leave the country.
Protesters have taken over the Ganabhaban, the official residence of Bangladesh’s prime minister.
People took to the streets in celebration after news of Hasina leaving the country spread. There have been reports of fires at a number of Awami League offices and structures.
Army chief Gen Waker-Uz-Zaman made a televised address to the nation where he said that an interim government would be formed to govern Bangladesh and urged people to refrain from clashes and vandalism.
