The son of toppled Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has warned that a special tribunal will likely sentence her to death, but that she remains safe in her Indian exile, as he threatened her supporters will block next year’s election unless a ban on her party is lifted.
Sajeeb Wazed made the comments to the Reuters news agency on Sunday, a day before the Dhaka court was due to deliver a televised verdict against Hasina on charges of crimes against humanity for carrying out a deadly crackdown on protesters in 2024.
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The threats are likely to further stoke tensions in Bangladesh, where a wave of bombings and arson attacks has gripped the capital ahead of the ruling and February’s planned election.
“We know exactly what the verdict is going to be. They’re televising it. They’re going to convict her, and they’ll probably sentence her to death,” said Wazed, in the United States capital, Washington, DC.
“What can they do to my mother? My mother is safe in India. India is giving her full security.”
Hasina, 78, has lived in exile in New Delhi since fleeing Bangladesh in August 2024, when the student-led protests forced an end to her 15 years in power.
A United Nations report estimated that up to 1,400 people were killed during the demonstrations that year, most by security forces firing live ammunition.
The former leader faces trial at Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal over the deadly crackdown. She denies wrongdoing and calls the proceedings politically motivated.
‘We will not allow elections’
Wazed told Reuters that supporters of the Awami League – the nominally centre-left, secular party that has dominated Bangladeshi politics since independence – would prevent elections from going ahead if the party remains banned.
“We will not allow elections without the Awami League to go ahead,” he said. “Our protests are going to get stronger and stronger, and we will do whatever it takes.”
He added that “unless the international community does something, eventually there’s probably going to be violence in Bangladesh before these elections”.
The interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, suspended the party’s registration in May and banned its political activities, citing national security threats and war crimes investigations into senior leaders.
A government spokesperson rejected Wazed’s warnings.
“The interim government regards any incitement to violence – especially by exiled political figures – as deeply irresponsible and reprehensible,” the spokesperson was quoted by Reuters as saying.
In an earlier interview with The Associated Press news agency, Wazed said the “ban has to be lifted, the elections have to be inclusive and free and fair. What is happening now really is an attempt to keep my mother and our political leaders from running in elections”.
Escalating violence
Violence has intensified in Dhaka in recent days.
On Sunday, crude bombs exploded across the city, following 32 blasts reported on November 12 alone. Dozens of buses have been torched, and authorities have detained Awami League activists over alleged sabotage.
Schools in the capital Dhaka and other major cities went online last week.
Bangladesh has deployed more than 400 border guards to reinforce security, strengthened checkpoints and restricted public gatherings.
Hasina remains “a lightning rod in Bangladeshi politics”, Michael Kugelman, a South Asia analyst, told Al Jazeera.
“She can deliver an online speech in India and trigger a violent reaction, as happened earlier this year,” he said.
“With Sheikh Hasina’s son threatening to block the election, it makes almost overt the party’s intention to use violence in the context of the upcoming election,” Kugelman added.
The violence occurs against a backdrop of broader concerns about the Yunus government’s record.
A report by Bangladeshi rights group Odhikar documented at least 40 extrajudicial killings between August 2024 and September 2025, despite promises to end state violence.
The same security forces accused of abuses under Hasina – including the paramilitary Rapid Action Battalion – remain operational.
Yunus has pledged to hold elections in February 2026, with a referendum on constitutional reforms on the same day.