did-isi-and-china-plot-with-khaleda-s-bnp-against-hasina

Intelligence sources have claimed that plans to overthrow former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government were hatched in London.

The alleged plotters were Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Hasina's political rival Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

Evidence also exists of Tarique Rahman, acting Bangladesh Nationalist Party chief and Khaleda Zia’s son meeting ISI officials in Saudi Arabia, intelligence sources have said. 

The aim of the meeting reportedly was to ensure Hasina's removal from power and to install the pro-Pakistan BNP, potentially with Chinese involvement, say media outlets quoting intelligence sources.

Protests by students to end government job quotas were hijacked by the conspirators and turned into a violent movement against Hasina and her government following intensified social media activity from various accounts, including Pakistani and US handles, a section of the Indian media reported.

More than 560 people died in the violence. The  student group Islami Chhatra Shibir (ICS) affiliated to the Jamaat-e-Islami, one of Bangladesh’s largest Islamist parties, allegedly fuelled the protests. 

It is also alleged that the Jamaat-e-Islami has ISI backing and that the ICS fuelled the unrest in an attempt to replace Hasina's government with one friendly to China and Pakistan.

After Hasina left the country, the President ordered the release of Khaleda Zia from prison, where she was serving a sentence for corruption involving a charity in the name of her husband, former Bangladesh President Ziaur Rahman, who was assassinated in a military coup in 1981. 

Tarique Rahman, who is based in London, has been accused of actively promoting BNP's ties with the Jamaat-e-Islami  and criticising India's alleged interference in Bangladesh.

Rahman has also faced various legal cases, including money laundering, corruption, and charges related to a 2004 grenade attack on a rally led by Hasina.

He faced three life sentences but moved to London for medical treatment in 2008, where he has lived in exile since.