Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences over the death of Khaleda Zia, saying her vision and legacy would continue to guide ties between India and Bangladesh.
In a social media message, PM Modi recalled his meeting with Khaleda Zia in Dhaka in 2015 and described her as a leader whose contributions to Bangladesh’s development and bilateral relations with India would always be remembered. He highlighted her role as the country’s first woman prime minister and acknowledged her lasting impact on regional diplomacy.
Khaleda Zia, who led the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), passed away at the age of 80 after a prolonged illness. She had been battling multiple health issues, including complications related to her liver, heart, kidneys, diabetes, arthritis, and infections, and had spent extended periods under medical care.
A towering figure in Bangladeshi politics for more than three decades, Zia played a crucial role in restoring democracy after years of military rule. Her political journey was marked by dramatic shifts — from leading elected governments and commanding mass public support to facing legal challenges, corruption convictions, and later receiving a presidential pardon.
Zia entered politics following the assassination of her husband, former President Ziaur Rahman, in 1981. Initially reluctant, she rose rapidly within the BNP, becoming its chairperson in 1984, a position she held until her death. Her long-standing political rivalry with Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League defined much of Bangladesh’s modern political history.
After the fall of military ruler Hussain Muhammad Ershad in 1990, Zia led the BNP to victory in the 1991 general elections, becoming prime minister when Bangladesh adopted a parliamentary system. She was the second woman to head a democratic government in a Muslim-majority country, after Pakistan’s Benazir Bhutto. BNP leaders have often noted that she never lost a parliamentary election she contested.
Born in 1946 in Dinajpur district of undivided India, Khaleda Zia leaves behind a complex and influential legacy that shaped Bangladesh’s political trajectory and its relationship with neighbouring India.
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