Bangladesh Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Betrayed by Close Aide in US-Backed Plot

Dhaka/New Delhi: There is a stir in the politics of Bangladesh these days. A new book has shaken the whole of South Asia amid media reports and rumors of a military coup on social media. The book claims that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was betrayed and ousted from power by her own relative and current army chief General Walker-uz-Zaman 'at the behest of the CIA.'

Which book reveals this?

This has been revealed in the book titled 'Inshallah Bangladesh: The Story of an Unfinished Revolution,' authored by Deep Haldar, Jaideep Majumdar and Sahidul Hasan Khokon. The book, published by Juggernaut Publishers, quotes former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal as saying that Hasina's overthrow was 'a perfect CIA plan.'

'CIA trapped Walker, intelligence failed'

Asaduzzaman is quoted in the book as saying, "We did not even know that the CIA had taken Walker into its trap. Even our intelligence agencies could not alert Hasina that the army chief had hatched a conspiracy against her." He further said that America's objective was to weaken the strong leaders in South Asia—Narendra Modi, Xi Jinping and Sheikh Hasina—so that American interests are protected.

The book makes another shocking claim: The geopolitical importance of 'St. Martin's Island' was also a major reason behind this conspiracy. This island, located near the Myanmar border in the Bay of Bengal, is very important from a strategic point of view. Before losing power, Hasina had alleged that "If I hand over this island to America, my government may survive, but it will compromise the sovereignty of the country."

How was Sheikh Hasina trapped?

According to the authors, General Walker had joined hands with fundamentalist organizations and Jamaat-e-Islami against Hasina. Asaduzzaman said in the book, "Just as Abhimanyu was surrounded and killed by his own people in the Mahabharata, Walker allied with Islamic forces to bring down Hasina." This conversation took place in a hotel in Delhi, where two former Awami League MPs were also present.

'The one who made a general, drove her out of the country'

The book further details that Walker-uz-Zaman took over as Army Chief in June 2024 and forced Hasina to leave the country on August 5. According to the former home minister, this was the general's 'first secret mission'—to topple the same leader who made him the army chief. On the other hand, this book has come at a time when the controversy over the role of the army in Bangladesh has deepened. On 11 October, media reports said the army detained 15 of its officers who were involved in the disappearance of opposition figures during the Hasina regime. Due to growing discontent, Walker had to cancel his visit to Saudi Arabia.

How was the deception committed?

In the book, quoting Khan, it has been written that Pakistan's spy agency ISI was working with Jamaat-e-Islami for a long time. Some ISI-trained people had infiltrated into the ranks of Jamaat, who played a key role in the killing of policemen in the last week of June. When the situation began to deteriorate, Khan, as Home Minister, was informed by police officials that ISI men had joined the student protesters.

He immediately reached out to Prime Minister Hasina but was told that "the army chief has assured that he will handle the situation." Even the army chief, who is a relative of Hasina, said in the presence of the prime minister that "the army will bring the situation under control."

What information did Walker provide?

Referring to that meeting, Khan said, "I told the Prime Minister that police will be deployed at every entry point of Dhaka so that no crowd from outside can enter the city. Walker said at the same time that the public has lost faith in the police and now the army should stop the protesters." He further said, "I had offered that my policemen would guard Gana Bhavan, but Walker said it was not needed, the army would ensure that no one came close to the Prime Minister's residence.