Khaleda Zia | |
---|---|
খালেদা জিয়া | |
![]() Zia in 2016 | |
9th Prime Minister of Bangladesh | |
In office 10 October 2001 – 29 October 2006 | |
President | |
Preceded by | Latifur Rahman (as Chief Adviser) |
Succeeded by | Iajuddin Ahmed (as Chief Adviser) |
In office 20 March 1991 – 30 March 1996 | |
President |
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Preceded by | Kazi Zafar Ahmed |
Succeeded by | Muhammad Habibur Rahman (as Chief Adviser) |
3rd Chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party | |
Assumed office 10 May 1984 | |
General Secretary | Mustafizur Rahman KM Obaidur Rahman Abdus Salam Talukder Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan Khandaker Delwar Hossain Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir |
Preceded by | Abdus Sattar |
4th Leader of the Opposition | |
In office 29 December 2008 – 9 January 2014 | |
Prime Minister | Sheikh Hasina |
Preceded by | Sheikh Hasina |
Succeeded by | Rowshan Ershad |
In office 23 June 1996 – 15 July 2001 | |
Prime Minister | Sheikh Hasina |
Preceded by | Sheikh Hasina |
Succeeded by | Sheikh Hasina |
2nd First Lady of Bangladesh | |
In role 21 April 1977 – 30 May 1981 | |
President | Ziaur Rahman |
Preceded by | Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib |
Succeeded by | Rowshan Ershad |
7th Leader of the House | |
In office 10 October 2001 – 29 October 2006 | |
Preceded by | Sheikh Hasina |
Succeeded by | Sheikh Hasina |
In office 20 March 1991 – 30 March 1996 | |
Preceded by | Kazi Zafar Ahmed |
Succeeded by | Sheikh Hasina |
Member of Parliament | |
In office 29 December 2008 – 9 January 2014 | |
Preceded by | Sayeed Iskander |
Succeeded by | Shirin Akhter |
Constituency | Feni-1 |
In office 1 October 2001 – 29 October 2006 | |
Preceded by | Zafar Imam |
Succeeded by | Muhammad Jamiruddin Sircar |
Constituency | Bogra-6 |
In office 20 March 1991 – 15 July 2001 | |
Preceded by | Zafar Imam |
Succeeded by | Sayeed Iskander |
Constituency | Feni-1 |
Personal details | |
Born | August 15th, 1945 (79) Jalpaiguri, Bengal, British India |
Political party | Bangladesh Nationalist Party (1979–present) |
Other political affiliations |
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Spouse | |
Relations |
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Children | |
Parents |
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Relatives | See Majumder–Zia family |
Begum Khaleda Zia[a] (born 15th August, 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the prime minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006.[3] She was the first female prime minister of Bangladesh and second female prime minister in the Muslim world, after Benazir Bhutto. She is the widow of one of the former presidents of Bangladesh, Ziaur Rahman. She is the chairperson and leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) since 1984, which was founded by her husband in 1978.[4]
After a military coup in 1982, led by army chief General Hussain Muhammad Ershad, Zia helped lead the movement for democracy until the fall of Ershad in 1990.[5] She became the prime minister following the BNP party win in the 1991 general election.[6] She also served briefly in the short-lived government in 1996, when other parties had boycotted the first election. In the next round of general elections of 1996, the Awami League came to power. Her party came to power again in 2001. She has been elected to five separate parliamentary constituencies in the general elections of 1991, 1996 and 2001. Since the 1980s, Zia's chief rival has been Awami League leader Sheikh Hasina. Since 1991, they have been the only two serving as the prime minister of Bangladesh.[7]
Following the end of her government's term in 2006, the scheduled January 2007 elections were delayed due to political violence and in-fighting, resulting in a bloodless military takeover of the caretaker government. During its interim rule, it charged Zia and her two sons with corruption.[8][9][10]
Zia was sentenced to a total of 17 years in prison for the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption case and Zia Charitable Trust corruption case in 2018. A local court handed her the verdict for abusing power as the prime minister while disbursing a fund in favor of newly formed Zia Orphanage Trust.[11] Referring to the international and domestic legal experts, the U.S. State Department in its 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices opined that "lack of evidence to support the conviction" suggests the case was a political ploy to remove her from the electoral process.[12] Amnesty International raised concerns that her "fair trial rights are not respected".[13] As of 2020, Zia was facing a total 36 cases against her including the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption Case and Zia Charitable Trust corruption case.[14]
Zia was transferred to a hospital for medical treatment in April 2019.[15] In March 2020, she was released for six months on humanitarian grounds with the conditions that she would stay at her home in Gulshan, Dhaka and not travel abroad.[16] She is also informally prohibited from making political moves, as doing so would result in re-imprisonment.[17] In September 2022, the 6-month period suspension of her sentence was granted for the sixth consecutive time.[18] She remained in Dhaka Central Jail from 2018 until 5 August 2024, after a nationwide wave of protests resulted in incumbent prime minister Hasina fleeing to India and the Bangladesh President issuing a release order of Zia.[19] In its list of the 100 Most Powerful Women in the World, Forbes magazine ranked Zia at number 14 in 2004,[20] number 29 in 2005,[21] and number 33 in 2006.[22]
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was invoked but never defined (see the help page).Since her release, Zia, now 76, has refrained from making any political moves. Any attempt to re-enter politics would mean a return to jail.
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