The ousted prime minister said the exclusion of her Awami League party had “deepened dissatisfaction with the interim government of Muhammad Yunus”.

Bangladesh’s ousted leader Sheikh Hasina denounces her National elections to be held next month Her party was banned from the vote, raising concerns about wider political divisions and possible unrest.

“A government born out of exclusion cannot unite a divided country,” Hasina said in a release released Thursday by The Associated Press.

Hasina was Sentenced to death in absentia Her criticism of the interim government of Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus has intensified in recent days as elections loom that will shape a new chapter for the country after a crackdown on a 2024 student uprising that killed hundreds and brought down his 15-year-old government.

“Whenever a large segment of the population is deprived of political participation, it deepens resentment, delegitimizes institutions and creates conditions for future instability,” the exiled former leader in India warned in an email to The Associated Press.

She also claimed that the current Bangladeshi government deliberately disenfranchised millions of her supporters by excluding her party, the formerly ruling Awami League, from the elections.

More than 127 million people in Bangladesh are eligible to vote February 12 electionis widely considered the country’s biggest fallout in decades and the first since Hasina stepped down after a massive uprising.

Yunus’ government is overseeing the process as voters weigh a proposed constitutional referendum on sweeping political reforms.

The campaign began last week with rallies in the capital Dhaka and elsewhere.

On August 5, 2024, after weeks of violent unrest, Hasina fled to India, and three days later Yunus returned to Bangladesh and took over.

He promised free and fair elections, but critics have questioned whether the process met democratic standards and whether the ban was truly inclusive. Hasina’s Awami League.

There are also concerns about the security and uncertainty of a referendum, which could bring significant changes to the constitution.

Yunus’ office said in a statement to The Associated Press that security forces will ensure that the election is conducted in an orderly manner and that no one will be allowed to influence the results through coercion or violence. International observers and human rights organizations have been invited to monitor the process, the statement added.

Tariq RahmanKhaleda Zia, the son of former prime minister and Hasina rival Khaleda Zia, returned to Bangladesh in December after her mother’s death.

Rehman, the acting president of Khaleda’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party, is a strong candidate to win the upcoming elections.

In her first public speech since stepping down, Hasina told a packed Press Club in Delhi on Friday that Bangladesh “will never experience free and fair elections” under Yunus.

Her speech on Friday was broadcast online and broadcast to more than 100,000 supporters.

The statement was criticized by Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which issued a statement saying, “surprise” and “shock” India allowed her to speak publicly.

Bangladesh has been asking India to extradite Hasina, but New Delhi has yet to comment on the request.

India’s past support for Hasina has strained relations between the South Asian neighbors since she was overthrown.