By Admin 
Khaleda Zia, who became the first woman Prime Minister of Bangladesh in 1991, died on Tuesday (30 December) at the age of 80 after a prolonged illness. Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chief Khaleda Zia was one of the two women who dominated Bangladeshi politics for four decades. The second woman is Sheikh Hasina, who has been the Prime Minister of Bangladesh 5 times. In August 2024, she had to flee power amid violent student protests and has been living in India since then.
Awami League President Sheikh Hasina has also expressed condolences on the demise of Khaleda Zia. She said in a post, ‘I express my deep condolences on the demise of BNP President and former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia. She will always be remembered for her role as the first woman Prime Minister of Bangladesh and in the struggle to establish democracy. I express my heartfelt condolences to his son Tariq Rehman and his bereaved family members.
political rivalry of begums
Since the 1980s, Bangladesh politics has revolved around Zia and Hasina. The political enmity between the two is well known, which is called the battle of begums. This is a respectable name used for a powerful woman. The political rivalry between the two encouraged street violence in Bangladesh, paralyzed the governance system and also hollowed out democratic politics from within.
Story related to the murder of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
The roots of the enmity between the two Begums go back to 1975, when Bangladesh’s founding father and Awami League chief Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family members were assassinated in a coup. Three months later, Zia’s husband Ziaur Rahman (who was the Deputy Chief of Army Staff at the time) effectively took control of the country and became President of Bangladesh in 1977.
How Begum Khaleda became the first PM
After the assassination of Ziaur Rehman in 1981, Zia and Hasina together launched a mass movement for democracy and ousted military ruler Hussain Mohammad Ershad from power in 1990. Jiya and Haseena’s friendship did not last long. The first free elections were held in Bangladesh in 1991. Zia won an unexpected victory over Hasina by getting the support of the country’s largest Islamic party, Jamaat-e-Islami. For this reason Khaleda became the first woman Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
Hasina was attacked with a grenade!
Sheikh Hasina defeated Zia in the 1996 general elections, but after 5 years Zia returned to power with a huge majority. In 2004, Hasina’s rally was attacked with a grenade, but Hasina survived. Zia’s government was blamed for this attack.
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