The nation will celebrate the 77th birthday of Prime Minister and Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina today.
Born on September 28, 1947, in Tungipara, Gopalganj, Sheikh Hasina is the eldest of the five children of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatun Nesa Mujib.
Currently, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is abroad attending the 78th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session. Following in the footsteps of Bangabandhu, she addressed the UNGA in Bengali, as she has done in previous years.
Awami League (AL), its affiliated organizations, and socio-cultural groups will commemorate the day with various events highlighting Sheikh Hasina’s life and accomplishments. These activities will include discussions, milad (prayer gatherings), and special prayers held both in the capital and nationwide.
Sheikh Hasina spent a significant part of her early life in her birthplace, where she received her early education. Her family moved to Dhaka in 1954 when Bangabandhu was elected as a legislator.
She pursued her education at institutions such as Sher-e-Bangla Girls’ School and College and Azimpur Girls’ High School, where she completed her secondary education in 1965. She then enrolled at Badrunnessa Government Girls’ College.
During her university days, she served as the vice-president of the students’ union at Eden Girls’ College (which included Badrunnessa and Eden Girls’ College at the time). Subsequently, she pursued her master’s degree in Bangla at Dhaka University.
As a student leader, Sheikh Hasina actively participated in the historic six-point movement in 1966 and the student movement of 1969, which led to the abdication of General Ayub Khan.
In 1968, she married nuclear scientist Dr. MA Wazed Miah with the blessing of her incarcerated father, Bangabandhu. During the Liberation War, she and her family were confined to a house in Dhaka. On July 27, 1971, she gave birth to her first child, Sajeeb Wazed Joy. Her second child, Saima Wazed, was born on December 9, 1972.
Following the assassination of her parents in 1975, Sheikh Hasina and her family sought political asylum in India, where she resided until 1981, when she was elected as the president of the Awami League in her absence. She returned to Bangladesh on May 17, 1981, to a grand reception.
In the 1986 parliamentary election, Sheikh Hasina was elected as a Member of Parliament from three different constituencies. After the fall of autocracy in 1990, she was chosen as the Leader of the Opposition through the general elections of 1991.
In the 1996 general elections, 21 years after her father’s assassination, she led the Awami League to victory, assuming power as Prime Minister for the first time.
On August 21, 2004, Sheikh Hasina narrowly escaped an assassination attempt as grenades were hurled at an AL rally on Bangabandhu Avenue in the capital. Although she survived, the attack resulted in the loss of at least 24 lives and injured over 500 others, most of whom were Awami League leaders and supporters.
In 2008, she led the Grand Alliance to a resounding victory, securing 90 percent of parliamentary seats in the general elections and becoming Prime Minister for the second consecutive term. On January 5, 2014, she was reelected as Prime Minister.
Under her leadership, Bangladesh has achieved remarkable progress in various fields, including economic growth, self-sufficiency in food production, and advancements in women’s empowerment, agriculture, education, healthcare, infrastructure, communication, energy, trade, ICT, and SME sectors.
Her humanitarian efforts, particularly in providing support to over 1.1 million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, have garnered international acclaim. In 2017, the UK-based ‘Channel 4’ referred to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as the ‘Mother of Humanity’ for her role in sheltering Rohingyas fleeing persecution.
Sheikh Hasina has received numerous awards and honors, including the Tagore Peace Award-2018, the Vaccine Hero award, and the Champion of Skill Development for Youth award. She has also been recognized with honorary degrees and accolades for her leadership and intellectual contributions.
Sheikh Hasina has authored more than 25 books, including ‘Mujib Amar Pita,’ ‘Living in Tears,’ ‘Sada Kalo,’ and ‘Amara Janaganer Kotha Bolte Esechhi.’
