Did Sheikh Hasina blame US for her ouster from Bangladesh? Her son says...

Sheikh Hasina's son, Sajeeb Wazed, has denied reports that his mother, the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, accused the United States of plotting against her in an undelivered speech. Wazed, who lives in Washington, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that these reports are "completely false and fabricated."

Wazed clarified that his mother did not make any statement before or after leaving Dhaka, and he confirmed this directly with her. This statement came shortly after reports surfaced claiming that Sheikh Hasina had planned to give a speech before resigning as Prime Minister and fleeing the country on August 5.

The recent resignation statement attributed to my mother published in a newspaper is completely false and fabricated. I have just confirmed with her that she did not make any statement either before or since leaving Dhaka

— Sajeeb Wazed (@sajeebwazed) August 11, 2024

According to these reports, Hasina's undelivered speech alleged that the United States was responsible for her ouster. The reports claimed that the 76-year-old leader said she could have stayed in power if she had agreed to give "Saint Martin and the Bay of Bengal to America."

In the reported speech, Hasina was quoted as saying, "I resigned so that I did not have to witness the deaths of students. They wanted to take power over dead bodies, but I prevented it. I could have remained in power if I had surrendered the sovereignty of Saint Martin Island and allowed America to control the Bay of Bengal. I urge the people of my country not to be swayed by radicals."

Saint Martin Island is the southernmost part of Bangladesh and is located in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal.