Exiled Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her family issued a scathing rebuke on Friday against recent verdicts in three corruption cases related to land plots in Dhaka’s Purbachal New Town, labelling the charges as “malicious” and “politically motivated” fabrications designed to sideline Bangladesh’s pro-liberation forces ahead of upcoming elections.
In a strongly worded statement, Sheikh Hasina, the Awami League (AL) president and daughter of Bangladesh’s founding father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, firmly denied all allegations, accusing the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) of operating under the thumb of an “unelected government” that has denied them any chance to defend themselves.
“We firmly deny all allegations of corruption, with each charge brought against us tainted by the political motivations of our opponents,” the statement read. “The ACC is under the control of an unelected government armed with slanted, partial evidence, which has prevented any opportunity to defend ourselves.”
The family expressed particular outrage over the implication of non-political relatives, calling it “even more disappointing” that “innocent family members who are not in any way involved in politics” have been dragged into the fray.
Sheikh Hasina highlighted the irony of the accusations, pointing to the current interim government’s chief adviser, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, who she claimed owns a sprawling 4,080 katha (approximately 53 acres) of land in Purbachal, complete with a resort.
“Now they are targeting our children because we bought 10 katha of land each in Purbachal—a ‘grave crime.’ Yunus himself owns 4,080 katha there and built a resort, but when Bangabandhu’s family (myself, Rehana, and our six children) took 10 katha each, we apparently committed a huge sin,” Sheikh Hasina said during a virtual meeting with party leaders on Wednesday, as reported by local media.
Purbachal Plot Case: Sheikh Hasina exposes hypocrisy of the accusers
Awami League warns of foiling election if barred through false cases, verdicts
ইউনূসের জিহাদি শাসনব্যবস্থাকে 'খুনি-ফ্যাসিবাদী' হুমকি হিসেবে অভিহিত করেছে আওয়ামী লীগ
The verdicts, handed down this week by the ACC, stem from allegations that Hasina’s family members—including her daughter Saima Wazed, son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, and other relatives—illegally acquired plots in the upscale Purbachal development through undue influence during her tenure. The cases accuse the family of graft involving payments below market rates and bypassing standard procedures.
However, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, a US-based technology entrepreneur and former ICT adviser to Sheikh Hasina, has repeatedly dismissed these claims as baseless. In a statement from August and reiterated in a recent BBC Bangla interview, Joy asserted: “Every step—from application to allotment to payment—followed the letter of the law,” and that the plots were “purchased at official government rates, not allotted free.”
Joy issued an open challenge to the authorities: “Prove that the family members named in the case own any other property in Dhaka”—a dare that, to date, has gone unanswered. He further escalated the rhetoric, warning that persistent “false and fabricated cases” aimed at disqualifying the Awami League from elections would provoke mass unrest.
“If the Awami League is prevented from contesting the upcoming parliamentary election… the party will have ‘no option but to take to the streets and foil the election.’ We will not allow a staged election that excludes the Awami League, Sheikh Hasina, and pro-liberation forces. It will be resisted at any cost,” Joy told BBC Bangla.
The Awami League echoed this defiance in an official statement released on Wednesday, declaring: “A staged election excluding the pro-liberation forces, the Awami League, and Sheikh Hasina will not be allowed in Bangladesh. It will be resisted at any cost, Inshallah.” The party has mobilised its grassroots network, calling for nationwide demonstrations, protest marches, and resistance programs across all districts and upazilas starting on Friday.
These actions target not only the Purbachal verdicts but also the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT-BD) rulings against Hasina and AL leaders, demanding the “resignation of fascist Yunus.”
Sheikh Hasina, speaking from exile in India since her ouster in August 2024, framed the broader crisis as an assault on Bangladesh’s democratic institutions. “This government has consistently undermined the institutions of Bangladesh, with an unconstitutional ban that disenfranchises millions of ordinary Bangladeshis,” her statement noted.
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She urged the ACC to redirect its efforts: “The ACC would be better employed investigating the ongoing cronyism and widespread corruption by those currently holding power.” Sheikh Hasina concluded with a rallying cry to her supporters: “Our leaders and workers have no money left—everything has been burned. We have only one goal: to restore democracy, free everyone detained without trial, and stop the false cases and planned hangings. The people will judge.”
The interim government, led by Yunus since August 2024, has defended the ACC’s independence and vowed to prosecute high-level corruption regardless of political affiliations. However, critics, including AL loyalists and expatriate communities, have decried the timing of the verdicts—mere weeks before potential election announcements—as a ploy to consolidate power.
Expatriate Bangladeshis, whom Hasina thanked profusely, have organised protests in major cities like London, New York, and Toronto, amplifying calls for her “honourable return” and an end to what they term “Yunus’ jihadist regime.”
“Until Bangladesh has a government that is elected with the consent of the people and endowed with the authority to maintain our institutions, our country’s pattern of corruption will not be resolved,” Sheikh Hasina’s statement warned, underscoring the high stakes as Bangladesh teeters between democratic restoration and deepening political polarisation.
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