Sheikh Hasina to hold presser on August 5, a month before Tarique Rahman’s expected visit

On August 5, 2026, Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will host a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents Club in New Delhi, marking the second anniversary of her arrival in India following the monsoon uprising of 2024 in Dhaka. Her son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, and former Education Minister Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel will join her in the media interaction.

The session will see senior leaders of the Bangladesh Awami League and former Ministers participate both physically and virtually, followed by an interactive question-and-answer session. The event, organized by the India-chaired BRICS summit, has been arranged by Waiel Awwad, the club's president. India has invited Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, who took office on February 17, 2026, after his BNP secured a significant victory in the election.

However, Rahman has not yet responded to the invitation. Hasina, who has been in New Delhi since fleeing Dhaka on August 5, 2024, has recently been quoted in global media outlets, recalling her return to Bangladesh on May 17, 1981, after a six-year exile following her father's assassination in 1975. She has reiterated her plans to return home, despite potential risks, citing her people's call for her to do so.

The BNP government's Deputy Minister for Liberation War Affairs, Ishraque Hossain, dismissed Hasina's announcement as a "political gimmick," suggesting it is merely to bolster the morale of her party workers. This comes after the interim government led by Mohammed Yunus banned the Awami League's political activities and its student wing Chhatra League in August 2024, a decision formalized through an anti-terrorism law amendment in April 2026.

Hasina received support from her long-time critic and author Taslima Nasreen, who urged "progressive people" in Bangladesh to pressure the Tarique Rahman government to lift the ban on the Awami League. Nasreen criticized Hasina for being lenient towards religious fundamentalists during her tenure.