Guwahati, Dec 30: Khaleda Zia, one of the most influential leaders in Bangladesh’s political history, died in Dhaka on Tuesday morning after a prolonged illness.
She was 80.
Leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which she headed for decades, confirmed her death, saying she had been undergoing treatment for multiple age-related ailments. In recent years, she had largely withdrawn from public life due to deteriorating health.
She was Bangladesh’s first female Prime Minister.
A three-time prime minister, Khaleda Zia served Bangladesh during 1991–96, briefly in 1996, and again from 2001 to 2006, a period marked by intense political churn and mass movements. Her long rivalry with Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina shaped the country’s politics for more than two decades, frequently spilling onto the streets and paralysing governance.
Khaleda Zia’s life also carries a strong regional and historical connection. Born in 1945 in what was then undivided Bengal, she moved with her family to East Pakistan after Partition. She later married Ziaur Rahman, a young army officer who would go on to become Bangladesh’s president before his assassination in 1981.
Following her husband’s death, Khaleda Zia entered politics and emerged as the face of BNP, drawing support from conservative and nationalist constituencies. Her political rise coincided with Bangladesh’s return to parliamentary democracy after years of military rule.
In the later phase of her career, she faced a series of legal cases and convictions, which BNP leaders consistently described as politically motivated. Court restrictions and failing health kept her away from active politics, though she continued to remain a powerful emotional symbol for party supporters.
Tributes poured in from across Bangladesh’s political spectrum, acknowledging her role in shaping the country’s democratic journey, even as sharp ideological divisions persisted until the end.
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