New Delhi, 12 August 2024 (TDI): Ousted Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina claimed on Sunday that the United States had a role in toppling her government.
In her first interview since the ouster from the office, Hasina said the US establishment wasn’t happy with her because she had refused to hand over St. Martin’s Island – which is located in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal.
The island spans only 3 square kilometres but its maritime boundary with Myanmar has made it strategically important for US and China.
“Had I agreed to the US request, I might have retained power,” Hasina told The Print, adding that her only crime was not allow a US base in St. Martin Island.
Read More: Hasina Will Return to Bangladesh for Elections, Son Says
Hasina, who resigned and fled the country earlier this week following massive unrest, is currently in New Delhi, India.
Bangladeshi media say more than five hundred people were killed in weeks of protests against Hasina. Many of them were shot by the police.
Thousands were wounded in the worst violence the South Asian country has seen since its war of independence in 1971.
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Referring to those clashes, Hasina said she resigned to avoid further violence and bloodshed.
She vowed to return to the country for elections, expressing confidence that the people of Bangladesh, for whom her family had sacrificed, would prevail.
