Sheikh Hasina has ordered the Awami League working committee to return to Bangladesh and launch protests, calling the recent election illegitimate and the ban on her party "entirely unlawful."
At a Washington policy forum, analysts warned that sidelining the Awami League reflects fear of electoral defeat and risks undermining Bangladesh’s democracy, stability, and international standing.
Sheikh Hasina has accused Muhammad Yunus’s interim administration of persecuting religious minorities, citing lynchings and a breakdown of law and order amid rising political tension.
Bangladesh’s interim government says Awami League will remain barred from February elections, even as US lawmakers warn that excluding a major party risks democratic credibility.