Sheikh Hasina has been the president of one of Bangladesh’s major political parties, the Awami League, for more than 48 years since May 17, 1981. However, during this long tenure, she has never publicly spoken about a “succession plan.” Who will take over the party leadership, and how, in her absence from Bangladesh? She has never given any indication about this in the past. Many analysts believe that the Awami League’s grip on Bangladesh politics was so strong that it may never have crossed Sheikh Hasina’s mind that one day she would need to think about her successor. But everything changed after the people’s uprising in Bangladesh on August 5 last year. The Awami League collapsed like a house of cards, and political activities of the party were also banned in the country. For the past year, Sheikh Hasina has been living in India as a “guest” of the Indian government, where her movements and communication with party leaders are strictly restricted. Experts say the Awami League is under pressure, and due to the current political crisis in Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina must now pay attention to the issue of succession. Sheikh Hasina will also turn 78 this month, so she needs to act quickly on this matter.
Sheikh Hasina has finalized her plan to include her son Sajeeb Wazed and daughter Saima Wazed Putul in the top leadership of the Awami League. Sheikh Hasina’s younger sister Sheikh Rehana’s son, Radwan Mujib Siddiq Bobby, is also expected to play a role in this matter. In doing so, Sheikh Hasina intends to follow the same “model” adopted by India’s opposition party, the Congress, where Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are on the front line, while Sonia Gandhi remains in the background as a patron. Exactly two months ago, Sheikh Hasina’s daughter Saima Wazed was serving as Regional Director of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Delhi. However, WHO officials recently placed her on indefinite leave, after which Sheikh Hasina’s daughter has become fully active in Bangladesh politics. Meanwhile, Sheikh Hasina’s son, Sajeeb Wazed, holds U.S. citizenship and lives permanently in the United States. Yet, after the fall of his mother’s government, he has emerged as the central face and spokesperson of the party, often giving interviews to both domestic and international media. Since Saima Wazed lives in the same city (Delhi) and time zone as her mother, she is able to assist Sheikh Hasina directly. She helps prepare drafts of her mother’s online speeches and organizes her program calendar. Due to the many restrictions on meeting Sheikh Hasina directly, Saima Wazed has been attending meetings on her behalf. Over the past two months, she has participated in several such gatherings. Multiple political analysts have confirmed this information, though they did not wish to reveal their names. Experts say this indicates that Sheikh Hasina is gradually stepping back from the scene and transferring many responsibilities to her children.
Discussions about Sheikh Hasina’s so-called “succession plan” have taken place in India and with several senior leaders of the Awami League, who confirmed certain details. However, this issue is so sensitive within the party that none of these leaders wanted to speak “on record.” Yet, Mohammad Arafat, a member of the party’s Central Executive Committee and former State Minister for Information, claimed that no discussions have yet taken place within the party on this matter. He told local media that, “To be honest, the succession plan you are referring to is not among our priorities right now. This is not the time to think about who gets which position.” “We are not even discussing this matter within the party. As you know, our main goal now is the restoration of democracy in Bangladesh, and every effort is being made to achieve this.” Still, Arafat’s remarks suggest that Sajeeb Wazed was already involved in party activities, and now Saima Wazed is also becoming active in Bangladesh politics.
The simple answer to this question is that after Sheikh Hasina’s daughter was placed on leave by the World Health Organization (WHO), she had no other option left. On July 11, 2025, Saima Wazed was sent on indefinite leave from her position as Regional Director for South-East Asia at the World Health Organization. An “internal email,” a copy of which was seen by officials, showed that the WHO Director informed staff of this decision. The contents of the email make it clear that the decision to place Saima Wazed on leave came after the government of Bangladesh expressed reluctance to continue working with the WHO. According to political analysts, in addition to this, allegations of embezzlement, fraud, and abuse of power brought against her by Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission may also have compelled the World Health Organization to make this decision.
Since Sonia Gandhi has stepped back from active politics due to health reasons, her children, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, have taken charge of leading the Congress Party. Sonia Gandhi is still a member of the Rajya Sabha and regularly attends Parliament sessions as well as opposition alliance meetings. However, Rahul Gandhi has now become the main face of the party at key movements, protests, and press conferences. Priyanka, playing the role of his most important ally, stands by his side, but she has never tried to overshadow her elder brother. In fact, despite heavy pressure during last year’s general elections in India, Priyanka Gandhi decided not to contest any seat herself. In that election, Rahul Gandhi won both of his seats, and Priyanka later won the by-election in Wayanad, Kerala, the seat Rahul vacated. Priyanka Gandhi, however, entered politics much earlier than her brother. She had been involved in election campaigning in Uttar Pradesh on behalf of her mother since 1999. But once elections ended, she would step away from politics again. Rahul Gandhi formally entered active politics in 2004 when he won from the Amethi constituency and became a Member of Parliament for the first time. Three years later, he was elected General Secretary of the Indian National Congress. Several close sources to Sheikh Hasina have confirmed that, just as India’s main opposition party is currently run—with Rahul Gandhi at the forefront and Priyanka supporting him—Sheikh Hasina wants to apply the same model to the Awami League.
Although in the past decade relations between Narendra Modi and Sheikh Hasina have warmed, the fact remains that Sheikh Hasina has also had long-standing ties with the Gandhi family. Even during the BJP government’s tenure over the last decade, whenever she visited India on official trips, Sheikh Hasina never missed the opportunity to meet opposition leader Sonia Gandhi or her children. In Delhi, senior political analyst Vinod Sharma believes this is in fact a “natural choice” for the Awami League. He noted that, just as in India the Congress is traditionally a family-centered party, in Bangladesh too the Awami League has historically been led by one family, so it is not surprising that leadership would again emerge from within Sheikh Hasina’s own family. Reliable party sources say they met Sheikh Hasina personally in India. However, at present, Saima Wazed remains in constant contact with her and is preparing the action plan. Meanwhile, another team led by Sajeeb Wazed in the United States is working to build narratives in favor of the party and highlight Awami League statements in the foreign media. The 76-year-old political party may be struggling through one of the most critical periods in its history, but the reins of leadership remain, as always, in the hands of the party’s first family.
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