Khaleda Zia, the nation’s first female head of government, had been enduring a long-term illness
Bangladesh’s former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia, aged 80, died on Tuesday at a Dhaka hospital following a lengthy struggle with health problems, as announced by her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in a statement.
She held the position of the South Asian country’s first female prime minister, leading the government from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006.
“I am profoundly sorrowful and heartbroken over her passing,” Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government, said. He added that Zia “stood as a significant chapter” in the history of Bangladesh.
“Despite political disagreements, her lengthy political career focused on national well-being, her people-centric leadership, and her unwavering determination consistently provided guidance,” Yunus said.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also expressed mourning over Zia’s demise.
In addition to serving twice as the opposition leader, Zia held the role of the country’s first lady from 1977 to 1981. Her husband, Ziaur Rahman, Bangladesh’s sixth president, was killed by members of the national army in 1981. A fierce competitor of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, Zia encountered multiple corruption charges but was cleared by the country’s Supreme Court.
Last week, her son Tarique Rahman, the acting chairman of the BNP, returned after nearly 17 years in exile. Rahman is expected to be a major candidate in the country’s general elections, scheduled for February.
On Monday, the National Citizen Party (NCP), emerging from the protest movement that removed Hasina from power last year, announced the formation of an electoral coalition with Jamaat-e-Islami, an Islamist party. This decision has created division within the NCP, which has presented itself as a centrist, reformist alternative to the BNP and Hasina’s Awami League.
In recent days, Bangladesh has experienced a surge of violence triggered by the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, one of the most prominent figures of the 2024 uprising, who was shot by masked attackers in Dhaka earlier this month.
Following his death, protesters across the country took to the streets, demanding the arrest of the attackers, shouting anti-India slogans, and engaging in rioting. Demonstrators attacked and set ablaze the offices of two major newspapers.