Let her return: Bangladesh seeks Sheikh Hasina's extradition day before Delhi event

A day before former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to make her first public appearance from New Delhi in nearly two years, Dhaka renewed its demand for her extradition and said it was ready to arrest her the moment she returns. Bangladesh also urged India not to allow Hasina to use its territory for political activities, insisting she should "return and face the law".

Hasina is scheduled to address an event organised by the Foreign Correspondents' Club of South Asia in New Delhi on Wednesday, marking her first public appearance since fleeing Bangladesh after the July Revolution toppled her Awami League government in August 2024. The former prime minister is expected to speak virtually about her political future and her proposed return to Bangladesh.

DHAKA INSISTS HASINA MUST RETURN

Speaking to reporters, Zahed Ur Rahman, an adviser to Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, said Dhaka had repeatedly conveyed its demand to New Delhi and expected India to honour the extradition arrangement between the two countries.

"We want her to return. We have written to India. We have raised the same with the Indian High Commissioner who met our Foreign Minister and Foreign Advisor. We want her extradition. And as long as she is there, she must not make any political statement. And you will notice that a committee of the Indian Parliament has given a report and they think that Sheikh Hasina should not sit there and do any politics. They have said, it would not be right to give her permission for such things. We have an agreement, an exchange agreement with India. So, we definitely want to bring her back."

Rahman said Bangladesh was prepared to arrest Hasina immediately if she returned and maintained that the legal process would be followed.

"If she says she wants to come, let her come! We are ready. We will ensure justice. Legal provisions will be followed and she will definitely be arrested as she is a death row convict. After her arrest she should exercise her rights, and she is free to contest it, defend whatever legal rights she has."

Emphasising that the matter was now before the courts, he added: "Subsequently, the court will give a verdict - either upholding the death sentence or acquitting her. Since we respect the court, we have gone to the court. We are ready to accept that. She will get justice."

Bangladesh also raised the issue with India on Monday during a meeting between Indian High Commissioner to Dhaka Dinesh Trivedi and Humaiun Kobir, the foreign affairs adviser to the Bangladesh prime minister. According to Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry, Dhaka expressed concern over reports that Hasina could make a political address from Indian soil.

INDIA DISTANCES ITSELF FROM HASINA'S DELHI EVENT

New Delhi, however, distanced itself from the event on Tuesday, saying it was being organised by a private media organisation and had no connection with the government. Addressing the weekly media briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the Centre neither endorsed nor was associated with any views expressed during the programme.

"The interaction you refer to is being organised by a private media entity. The government has no involvement whatsoever in it. Neither does it endorse any views that may be expressed at the forum."

Bangladesh has repeatedly sought Hasina's extradition after she was sentenced to death in absentia in November last year on charges of crimes against humanity.

New Delhi has not accepted or rejected the extradition request. A report tabled in Parliament last week by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs said the government had informed the panel that Bangladesh's request was "being examined by the competent authorities" in accordance with applicable laws and established procedures.

The committee, chaired by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, also noted that Hasina's stay in India was guided by the country's humanitarian tradition of providing refuge to people facing grave distress or an existential threat. At the same time, the panel said it had been informed that India was not providing Hasina with "a political platform or any space to undertake political activity from Indian territory".

DHAKA SAYS NO PLANS TO FACILITATE TASLIMA NASRIN'S RETURN

Rahman also addressed questions about exiled Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasrin, saying the government had no plans to facilitate her return.

"As far as Taslima Nasreen, she is outside the country and she is saying that no government has allowed her to come back. The government has no initiative to bring her back. Whether she will come back or what she is doing to return is entirely her personal decision. She can follow due process according to her decision. Then the government can take its own decision. But there is nothing for the Bangladesh government to take an initiative by its own."

Nasrin recently returned to Kolkata for the first time in 19 years. Calling it an emotional homecoming, she thanked the authorities for allowing her visit and expressed hope that she would now be able to travel to the city more frequently. The author, who left Bangladesh after facing threats over her writings critical of religious extremism, had lived in Kolkata for nearly 14 years before leaving the city in 2007.

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