Where Are Sheikh Hasina's Children And Why WHO Placed Her Daughter On Indefinite Leave

Last Updated:November 18, 2025, 13:55 IST

Sheikh Hasina’s daughter, who spent much of her childhood in India, has maintained a public distance from politics but the current crisis drew her into the political crossfire

Sheikh Hasina's family, once the centre of Bangladesh's political power, is now dispersed across India, the United States and the United Kingdom.

As Bangladesh grapples with the shockwaves from the Crimes Tribunal sentencing former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death, a verdict she can still appeal, attention has now turned to the dramatic upheavals already unfolding within her family. Sheikh Hasina’s daughter, Saima Wazed, has emerged as the most visible face of the family’s troubles.

A psychologist by training and widely respected for her work in neurodevelopmental disorders, the 53-year-old has been living in New Delhi, where she was appointed the World Health Organisation’s Regional Director for South-East Asia Region on January 1, 2024. In July this year, WHO confirmed that Saima Wazed had proceeded on an “indefinite leave" from her role.

In a move that stunned diplomatic and public health circles, the decision followed allegations of corruption and fraud against Saima filed by Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission. WHO confirmed its action through an official statement, though experts note that the charges are widely seen as politically charged, given Bangladesh’s escalating crackdown on figures linked to the former ruling party.

Saima, who spent much of her childhood in India, has maintained a public distance from politics. Yet the current crisis has drawn her directly into the political crossfire, even as she continues living quietly in the capital.

Parallel to Saima’s troubles, Sheikh Hasina’s son, Sajeeb Ahmed Wazed, nown globally as Joy, has stepped into a heightened public glare. Based for more than two decades in Falls Church, Virginia, the businessman and technology specialist has played an active role in defending his mother abroad since her arrival in India last year.

Joy, who studied in India before graduating from the Harvard Kennedy School, has long been projected as Hasina’s political heir. A key architect of the ‘Digital Bangladesh’ initiative, he served as an adviser on information and communication technology during the Awami League government. But his growing prominence has come with scrutiny.

In 2016, an investigative report by journalist David Bergman for The Wire cited an FBI memo linking him to a suspicious $300 million transaction. Joy rejected the allegations as politically motivated, accusing his critics of targeting him for highlighting human rights abuses in Bangladesh.

He currently heads Wazed Consulting Inc in the United States, dividing his time between business responsibilities and the political responsibilities increasingly thrust upon him. Married to US citizen Christine Ann Overmyer, he lives with their daughter Sophia, even as he maintains frequent contact with Awami League circles.

Hasina’s family, once the centre of Bangladesh’s political power, is now dispersed across India, the United States and the United Kingdom. Her daughter remains in Delhi, confronting the fallout from WHO’s decision; her son operates from the US, navigating both political expectations and controversy; and her sister, Sheikh Rehana, lives in London’s Golders Green, largely removed from public view.

The former prime minister herself has been living in India for more than a year, marking yet another chapter of exile in a life repeatedly shaped by political upheaval.

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