Dhaka: Sheikh Hasina, who once helped rescue Bangladesh from military rule, saw her 15-year reign come to an abrupt end on Monday as protesters stormed her palace in Dhaka.

During her time in power, Hasina oversaw an economic rebirth but was also criticized for the mass arrest of political opponents and human rights violations by her security forces. Protests began in July, initially led by university students against civil service job quotas, but soon escalated into widespread unrest and calls for her resignation.

Police and pro-government student groups attacked demonstrators last month, drawing international condemnation. Despite winning a fifth term as prime minister in January, the opposition boycotted the vote, alleging it was neither free nor fair. Hasina's government faced numerous accusations of rights abuses, including the murder of opposition activists.

The daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led Bangladesh to independence, Hasina was abroad in 1975 when her father, mother, and three brothers were murdered during a military coup. She returned six years later to lead her father's Awami League party, enduring a decade-long struggle that included house arrest. Hasina and Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) ousted military dictator Hussain Muhammad Ershad in 1990, but their rivalry dominated modern Bangladeshi politics.

Hasina first became prime minister in 1996 but lost to Zia five years later. Both were imprisoned on corruption charges in 2007, then contested an election in 2008 that Hasina won in a landslide. Since then, she has led Bangladesh through significant economic growth, largely driven by its garment export industry. The country has experienced an average annual growth of over six percent since 2009, with poverty plummeting and over 95 percent of its 170 million people now having access to electricity.

However, Hasina's government also faced criticism for its intolerance of dissent. Five top Islamist leaders and a senior opposition figure were executed over the past decade for crimes during the 1971 liberation war, leading to protests and clashes. The United States imposed sanctions in 2021 on Bangladesh's security forces over human rights abuses.

As protests against her government escalated, nearly 100 people died in a brutal day of unrest on Sunday. In response, Hasina resigned and fled the country by helicopter. Bangladesh's army chief, Waker-Uz-Zaman, announced the formation of an interim government to restore order.

The military declared an emergency in January 2007, installing a caretaker government for two years. Hasina then ruled from 2009, winning a fourth consecutive election in January amid accusations of misusing state institutions to maintain power. Despite efforts to quell the protests, widespread civil disobedience continued, culminating in her resignation and the establishment of an interim government.