The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) of Bangladesh, founded by Hasina herself, filed two warrants against the former PM and others over alleged enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.
Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has issued an arrest warrant against the ousted former Prime Minister and 10 others, including her former Defence Adviser Tarique Ahmed Siddique and former IGP Benazir Ahmed, over alleged enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.
The tribunal, chaired by Justice Md. Golam Mortuza Majumdar, issued the orders after the prosecution filed two petitions seeking the arrest of these 11 individuals. According to The Daily Star, the tribunal ordered authorities to arrest and produce Sheikh Hasina and the others before February 12.
Last year, the tribunal issued arrest warrants against Sheikh Hasina and 45 others in connection with alleged crimes against humanity during the student-led agitation that culminated in her ouster, where over 500 people were killed. Hasina fled to India after fleeing Dhaka and has resided here since.
Relations between India and Bangladesh have been in free fall since Hasina’s ouster and the entry of Nobel laureate Muhammed Yunus as the country’s chief adviser, particularly over a surge of attacks on Hindu minorities. The interim government in Bangladesh has promised to extradite Hasina and even sent a diplomatic note to India over the matter.
Hasina has reportedly lived in safe houses in India since August, frequently shifting locations for safety depending on the government’s advice. However, the leader in political exile has been continuing to issue occasional statements on Bangladesh’s political situation through her party – Awami League—social media machinery or her son Sajeeb Wazed.
While acknowledging the receipt of Bangladesh’s extradition request, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that the government had ‘no comment to offer’. Earlier, a senior source in the ministry told News18 that the government is likely to respond to the diplomatic note formally, by diplomatic protocol.
