Bangladesh Requests India To Send Back Ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

Bangladesh has officially requested India to return former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India on 5 August following a student-led movement that resulted in her ousting.

Local media reported that Bangladesh’s Interim government’s Foreign Affairs Adviser, Touhid Hossain, made the request through a ‘note verbale’.

Hossain confirmed to reporters, “We have sent a note verbale to India requesting to send Sheikh Hasina back.”

On 5 August, the student-led protests, which had been ongoing for weeks, culminated in the removal of Sheikh Hasina’s government after clashes that resulted in over 600 deaths.

Hasina, 76, fled to India, and Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus established an interim government.

Sheikh Hasina Accuses Yunus Of Orchestrating Protests; Criticizes Interim Government For Depriving People’s Rights

Earlier in December, Hasina accused Yunus of orchestrating the protests that led to her removal, claiming that he had meticulously planned the demonstrations to overthrow her government.

During a virtual meeting with the United Kingdom Awami League, Hasina said that despite the protesters’ demands met, unrest continued across the country, suggesting that the protests were part of a larger conspiracy.

Hasina claimed, “Yunus himself said that the student protest that started on July 7, 2024, was not student-initiated but a meticulously designed protest to overthrow me…He was the mastermind who started this conspiracy because all the demands were met, and there was no scope for protest, despite there being protests across the nation. It was a meticulous conspiracy.”

Hasina also criticized the interim government, calling it ‘fascist’ and accusing it of depriving the people of Bangladesh of their rights.

“Today Bangladesh is going through a tough time. Under a fascist government, the people of Bangladesh have deprived of their rights. The whole of Bangladesh is burning. Today, Bangladesh is being destroyed,” she further asserted.

Hasina further highlighted that the Bangladeshi government charged former ISKCON priest Chinmoy Krishna Das with sedition and arrested him. She criticized the lack of legal representation for Das, stating that this showed the country had no law and order.

Hasina stated, “They arrested Chinmoy Krishna Das and said there couldn’t be any kind of lawyer defending him. What kind of justice is this? This proves that Bangladesh doesn’t have law and order.”

The political climate in Bangladesh remains tense, with Hasina condemning the actions of the interim government and claiming that the people are suffering.

The international community is closely monitoring the situation, particularly regarding the potential extradition of Hasina back to Bangladesh.

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