With Hasina gone in Bangladesh, a rival family tastes power

Bangladeshi political leaders Khaleda Zia (left), chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and chief of the Bangladesh Awami League Sheikh Hasina. - AFP

DHAKA: Two women dominated Bangladeshi politics for decades. One was chased into exile. The other is newly free from custody and too sick to rule, but her heir looks set to take power.

Autocratic ex-premier Sheikh Hasina, 76, fled the country by helicopter for neighbouring India this month as huge crowds demanding an end to her rule marched towards her palace.