On 28th September, 1947 when a child was born in an ordinary way in an ordinary Bengali middle-class household nobody gave much importance to that birth. Perhaps, everybody thought one day she will marry, become a wife and then, a mother. Her father was an illustrious man, a political leader but there was no possibility that his daughters would inherit his political legacy. In accordance to Asian family life, it was presumed that either one of his sons or a male family member would follow his footsteps. It was not even in her parents' knowledge that the child just born would one day emerge as one of the most powerful political leaders in the subcontinent weathering a very stormy life.

It was expected and predictable that Indira Gandhi would one day become the most powerful Prime minister of India as she was groomed by her father Pandit Nehru to become a political leader. During Nehru's premiership Indira was promoted by her father as the president of the All India Congress. She became a full time companion of Nehru and his strong political advisor. After Nehru's death it did not take a long time for her to become the country's prime minister.

Sheikh Hasina had no such patronization or promotion from her father to step into politics. In student life she was an activist but very soon she was married off to a scientist and chose her role as a housewife. It was fate not patronization from any quarter that Sheikh Hasina was forced to take the leadership of Awami League (AL) when the party was in disarray without any leadership.

Almost all the prominent leaders who could take the leadership of Awami League were killed with Bangabandhu in the disaster of 15th August. Those who were alive were suffering from lack of courage and unity among themselves. At that time nobody thought AL would be able to reorganize itself, would have a unifying leadership and one day would again capture power.

Sheikh Hasina took over the party's leadership at a very difficult time after all her family members were butchered. She was very inexperienced in politics and was still grieving from the loss of her beloved family members. Nobody expected that she would come out of this predicament and become a sort of an iron lady. Everybody thought Awami League was an unelectable party and Hasina will be a short-term leader and at an opportune moment some old guards of the party like Dr. Kamal Hossain waiting in the wing would replace her and grab the party leadership.

This happened in India also. After the sudden death of Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, the right wing leaders of Congress under Morarji Desai thought it would be easy for them to get the throne of Delhi. Their opponents under the leadership of Kamaraj thought by supporting Indira against Morarji Desai and exploiting the name of the Nehru family they would defeat Morarji and Indira would be elected the leader of the Congress party and hence the prime minister.
Indira, though experienced in politics was a woman. So the Kamaraj gang thought it would be very easy for Kamaraj to topple her and become the prime minister. Indira proved she was more clever and a strong politician than both Morarji and Kamaraj camps.

In Bangladesh also we witnessed almost the same scenario. Some old guards of the Awami League party like Dr. Kamal Hossain, Abdur Razzak and others perhaps thought that to defeat the other contestants for the party leadership they needed Sheikh Hasina as she was the daughter of Sheikh Mujib. It would be easy for her to become the leader of the party but as she was an inexperienced politician and a housewife it would be easy to replace her by some old guards to the party leadership in time.

Again fate played its amazing role in Bangladesh politics also. Within a very short time Sheikh Hasina came out from her role of a housewife and proved her ability and courage to lead a devastated party. Some old guards conspired for some time then they had to leave the party and to oppose Hasina they formed new parties themselves. Dr. Kamal Hossain formed Gono Forum and Abdur Razzak revived Bakshal for some time. Now they are history. Abdur Razzak is dead and Bakshal has become extinct. Gono Forum and Dr. Kamal Hossain are also lost in the political wilderness.

Like all other great men and women Sheikh Hasina has some failures in her politics. But her courage and pragmatism like her father has overshadowed her failures. Her father was a social democrat. But I would say Sheikh Hasina is a liberal democrat. She is not dogmatic but flexible. When and wherever necessary she can change her political direction, sometime in the Left way and sometime the Right way and she is a great survivor with these policies.

Her fundamental beliefs in the spirit of liberation movement was tested and proved. With the change of the political wind she sometimes retreats, sometimes goes forward with those ideals but she has kept on upholding the fundamental principles of the war of independence unwaveringly. One day history will recognize that Sheikh Hasina not only fought with militarism successfully but thwarted the rise of extreme fundamentalism in the country so far.

We may criticize her administration for many failures, but nobody can deny that without her courageous struggle against militarism and fundamentalism, Bangladesh could have been a killing field like Pakistan and Afghanistan with the rise of Talibanism.

Her diplomacy in international politics is also marked by success so far. America's critical attitude towards Sheikh Hasina's administration now seems to be somewhat changed. The fear that Modi government in India would be hostile to Hasina government proved to be a propaganda. European Union and World Bank are also willing to cooperate with present Bangladesh government now.

On the international horizon Dr. Yunus is still a flying kite, not getting a place to land in his own country. If Hasina can successfully fight against widespread corruption and day to day terrorism like killing and kidnapping in the country then certainly she will have a place in history as a builder of a new Bangladesh. The country is rapidly developing economically under her leadership, but her battle against the moral declination and social degeneration is still an unfinished task. (The Independent)