Bangladesh’s first woman Prime Minister Khaleda Zia dies; Jaishankar to attend funeral

By Daily Excelsior – DHAKA, Dec 30 : Khaleda Zia, Bangladesh’s first woman prime minister who restored democracy after a span of military rule and dominated the country’s politics for decades, died on Tuesday after a prolonged illness. She was 80. Zia’s demise came less than six weeks before Bangladesh will vote in the parliamentary elections for the first time after a massive student-led uprising led to the collapse of the Sheikh Hasina-led government. Zia and Hasina were political rivals. “My mother is no more,” Zia’s elder son and Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) acting Chairman Tarique Rahman said early in…