Sheikh Hasina lands at Hindon IAF base after fleeing Bangladesh

In a briefing to reporters, Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman announced he would take control during “a critical time for our country” and establish an interim government. “I am taking responsibility now and we will go to the president and ask to form an interim government to lead the country in the meantime,” he stated.

Hasina, 76, is on her way to London through India, said PTI in a report, citing multiple diplomatic sources. She is reported to be travelling in a C-130 Bangladesh Air Force transport aircraft, which made a stopover in India. It remains unclear whether the aircraft will continue beyond India or if Hasina will transfer to a different plane for further travel, potentially to London, reported PTI.

Meanwhile, celebrations broke out among the crowds who had been protesting in Dhaka for another day. The internet was cut for several hours overnight, and residents reported raids and gunshots, including in affluent areas, ahead of a planned mass protest on Monday.

Rights groups had accused Hasina’s government of using state institutions to cement its power and suppress dissent, including through the killing of opposition activists. The latest student-led protests were triggered by a quota system that they claimed unfairly allocated government jobs to the descendants of freedom fighters from the 1971 independence war.