Bangladesh President Shahabuddin Resigns Over Health Concerns

DHAKA-Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin resigned on Friday, citing serious health concerns, ending a presidency that spanned a turbulent period following the 2024 ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, according to a statement from his office.

Shahabuddin, 76, has served as the country’s largely ceremonial head of state since April 2023. His tenure included the political upheaval that followed Hasina’s flight to India after a student-led uprising forced her from power in August 2024.

In a statement released by his press secretary, Shahabuddin said recent medical examinations had diagnosed him with autonomic neuropathy, a condition that causes him to experience occasional brief losses of consciousness.

The president said his decision to step down was based on his medical condition. Reuters had reported on Thursday that Shahabuddin, a former ally of the ousted prime minister, was expected to resign on Friday.

His departure leaves Bangladesh without a sitting president at a politically sensitive time, five months before Sheikh Hasina’s planned return, according to the statement’s context.

Hasina’s Awami League party remains banned, while many of its leaders and activists have either been jailed or gone into hiding since the student-led uprising that toppled her government in 2024.

Under Bangladesh’s constitutional arrangements, the speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad, the national parliament, will assume the president’s duties until a successor is elected, Shahabuddin’s office said.

As president, Shahabuddin served as commander-in-chief of Bangladesh’s armed forces, although executive authority in the South Asian nation of about 173 million people rests with the prime minister and cabinet.

Shahabuddin’s resignation comes as Bangladesh continues to navigate political uncertainty following the dramatic change in government that reshaped the country’s leadership after the 2024 uprising.