Sheikh Hasina's Farewell Letter Revealed Amidst Political Crisis

New Delhi: “Chole Jachchi amaar babar shadhin desh chhere. Abar phirbo, Inshallah” (I am leaving the country liberated by my father. God willing, I shall return again) were the last sentences of a letter written by former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, before she fled the country on Monday.

It was learnt that before leaving, she mailed the letter, written in Bengali, to some of her close media friends. The letter was later circulated to her close associates and well-wishers in the country.

She reportedly wrote: “I am resigning for the benefit of the country and its people. I wanted to address the nation or at least record a video message as my farewell to the people. Did not get the opportunity. I was defeated by the evil power (Oposhokti).” She went on to state: “I pray for the country and its people. I cannot bear to witness the raging violence and deaths.” The letter was addressed to “Desh o jonogoner sharthe” (To the nation and the people).

As Bangladesh limps back to normalcy, it is revealed Sheikh Hasina was in no mood to quit and wanted to intensify the crackdown on the protesters on Monday morning. It was her son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, based in United States, who finally persuaded her to relent and resign.

A local newspaper ‘Prothom Alo’ reported that even as the violence raged on the streets and the death toll rose, Sheikh Hasina summoned top officers and asked them to intensify the curfew. She rejected suggestions to transfer the power to the Army.

The article claimed the former PM pointed to visuals of mobs attacking and climbing atop police vehicles and wanted to know why the forces failed to control the mayhem. It said she reminded the top officers that they were given these “coveted posts” as she “trusted them”.

Even as the top officers tried to explain that the situation had spiralled out of control and a crackdown was not the solution, the former PM “refused to budge”. It said that the officers then spoke to her sister Rehana and urged her to persuade Sheikh Hasina to resign and hand over power. When this too failed, her son had to intervene. Speaking to a TV channel, her son Joy said Sheikh Hasina wanted to stay, but “we kept insisting it wasn't safe for her… we persuaded her to leave”.