Bangladesh asks India to hand over convicted ex-PM Hasina, former minister Kamal

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DHAKA: Bangladesh urged India on Monday to sentence former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asduzaman Khan Kamal to death after they were sentenced to death for their role in a crackdown on a student uprising last year.

Dhaka said New Delhi was bound to do so under an extradition treaty.

Hasina’s autocratic rule was backed by New Delhi, and after it was toppled in a mass coup in August 2024, the 78-year-old fled to India, straining ties between the two neighbours. Since then she has been in hiding.

On Monday, a court in Dhaka sentenced Hasina to death in absentia as well as former interior minister Asduzaman Khan Kamal, after being found guilty of crimes against humanity for a deadly crackdown on last year’s student-led uprising.

The former minister’s whereabouts are unknown, but Bangladesh says he is also in India.

“We request the Government of India to immediately hand over the two criminals to the Bangladeshi authorities,” Dhaka’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

Bangladesh warned that “giving shelter to these criminals … would be a very friendly and fair fight.”

India’s foreign ministry said it “noted Hasina’s decision”.

India is committed to the best interests of the people of Bangladesh, including peace, democracy, inclusion and stability, the ministry said in a statement. “

Hasina’s 15-year rule saw widespread human rights abuses, including mass detentions and extrajudicial killings of her political opponents.

Bangladesh said last year it would request an Interpol red notice for Hasina, but there was no record on the global police body’s alert law enforcement list.

Interim leader of Bangladesh Mohammad Younis welcomed the decision.

“The execution of Sheikh Hasina and Asduzaman Khan Kamal for crimes against humanity is a historic decision,” the Nobel Peace Prize laureate said in a statement.

He called for calm and warned against any “attempts to violate public order”, “urging everyone to desist from any untoward acts”.

Hasina’s son and adviser, Sajeeb Wazid, told Reuters on the sidelines of the verdict that he would not appeal unless a democratically elected government took power with the participation of the Awami League.

During the trial, prosecutors told the court that they had uncovered evidence of his direct command to use lethal force to quell a student-led uprising in July and August 2024.

According to a United Nations report, up to 1,400 people may have died during the protests between July 15 and August 5, 2024, with thousands more injured – most of them by security forces.

Hasina was represented by a government-appointed defense lawyer who told the court that the charges against her were baseless and sought her acquittal.

Before the verdict, Hasina dismissed the allegations and the fairness of the tribunal’s proceedings, insisting the guilty verdict “was a foregone conclusion.”

Bangladesh has been under tension ahead of the verdict, with at least 30 crude bomb blasts and 26 vehicle fires across the country in the past few days. However, no casualties have been reported.

‘Politically motivated’

Hasina, 78, who has lived in India since her overthrow in August 2024, challenged the legitimacy of the tribunal in an email interview with Reuters last month.

“This action is a politically motivated charade,” he said. “They are brought by kangaroo courts, with no final convictions. They are presided over by an unelected government made up of my political opponents.”

She also said she was denied adequate notice of the hearings and a meaningful opportunity to mount a defense, adding that she was not personally involved in the use of deadly force or other alleged crimes.

The Muslim-majority South Asian country of 170 million people has been governed by an interim administration headed by peace minister Muhammad Yunus since Hasina fled. Although the country has been largely peaceful since then, political stability has not yet returned.

In an interview with Reuters, Hasina warned of growing anger among Awami League supporters that millions of party loyalists would boycott parliamentary elections in February.

On Monday, security remained tight in Dhaka and other major cities, with paramilitary forces deployed around key government buildings and the tribunal complex.

Officials said they were prepared for any problems after the verdict.