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Shaikh Azizur Rahman

Bangladesh’s formal request for the extradition of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina has put New Delhi in a diplomatic bind, with officials and experts suggesting India is unlikely to comply due to legal uncertainties and fears of damaging its strategic interests.
After a massive nationwide protest led by students ousted Hasina on August 5, ending her 15-year rule, she fled to India where she is reportedly staying in housing provided by the Indian government.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs has declined to clarify its next steps in response to the extradition request, which was sent by Bangladesh last week.
“At this time, we have no comment to offer on this matter,” ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on December 24.
Some Indian foreign policy experts suggest New Delhi may not hand Hasina back without stringent proof of wrongdoing.
“Bangladesh needs to present solid evidence that Hasina is guilty of the crimes they are accusing her of, as extradition is essentially a judicial process,” Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty, former Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh, told This Week in Asia.
“The clauses of the bilateral extradition treaty between the two countries, which emphasise on fairness and safety, must also be honoured,” he added.
In July, students in Bangladesh launched a mass movement demanding the abolition of a government job quota system. After government forces cracked down on the peaceful protest – allegedly following a directive from Hasina – violently killing many students, other people joined the protests, which finally forced Hasina to resign and flee the country.

By the time Hasina was ousted following the seven-week uprising, more than 1000 protesters had been killed and around 20,000 left injured or disabled, according to an estimate by the interim government.
As soon as the interim government was formed in August, students and other political and citizen groups launched a campaign demanding that Hasina be brought back to Bangladesh and made to face trial.
The Dhaka-based International Crime Tribunal (ICT), a court of justice that investigates and prosecutes domestic war crimes, has issued arrest warrants against Hasina and her associates. Among the many court cases she faces, she is accused of orchestrating a genocide during last year’s protests, as well as other “crimes against humanity” throughout her 15-year reign. The interim government has also sought help from the international police organisation Interpol in seeking her arrest.
Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, who is based in the US, claimed the interim government had “weaponised the judiciary” and launched a “political witch hunt” against her in a social media post last week.
On Tuesday, a student-led rally of thousands in Dhaka called for the prosecution of Hasina as well as close aides complicit in her alleged crimes. The protesters chanted slogans demanding Hasina be tried and that her political party be banned.


Bangladesh’s interim government, led by Nobel Prize winner Mohammad Yunus, insists that it will continue to push for Hasina to be brought back to the country to face trial.
Student activist Mahfuj Alam, who is also an adviser to the interim government, told This Week in Asia that the entire nation wants Hasina to face trial in Bangladesh for her all “crimes against humanity” during her regime.
“Apart from killing over 1,000 peaceful students and other protesters during the uprising in July and August, her government was behind thousands of cases of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings since 2009. She is accused of massive corruption, including siphoning off huge amount of public funds during her rule,” Alam said.
“The trial of Sheikh Hasina is linked to the democratisation of Bangladesh. She must stand trial for her all crimes against humanity.”
However, former Indian high commissioner Chakravarty said the fact that Hasina had no legal case against her at the time she fled to India could complicate Bangladesh’s extradition efforts.
There are “too many unanswered legal questions”, Chakravarty said.

“Can an unconstitutional temporary government seek extradition of a PM who was forcibly sent out of the country by the army but did not resign? Is the ICT empowered to issue an arrest warrant for crimes not related to the 1971 genocide?”
Chakravarty also explained that a “political exception” clause in the bilateral extradition treaty can also be invoked to reject a formal request.
Bangladeshi political analyst Zahedur Rahman told This Week in Asia that it is “almost certain” that India would not send back Hasina.
“India must have known how unpopular Sheikh Hasina was in Bangladesh during her long rule and how much anger, resentment, and hatred people had towards her. But since she was able to stay in power and fulfil India’s needs, the Indian government wanted to maintain that status quo,” he said.
“India surely knows that trying to bring Sheikh Hasina back to power in Bangladesh will only further incite anger, resentment, and hatred among the people, which will make it impossible for her to remain in power.”
India’s refusal to extradite Hasina will have far-reaching implications as far as power dynamics in South Asia
Rashna Imam, Bangladesh Supreme Court lawyer
Bangladesh Supreme Court lawyer Rashna Imam said that India may not be keen to extradite Hasina because it is “competing with China to become a superpower” and becoming a “regional hegemon” would pave the way for that.
“Hasina compromised the interests of Bangladesh in many ways in exchange for India’s backing to retain power. India is worried that if it does extradite Hasina, it might send out a message to its existing and future allies that India does not fulfil its end of the bargain when the time comes,” the jurist and political analyst told This Week in Asia.
If India refuses to extradite Hasina, it would be perceived as an affront to Bangladesh’s judicial process and sovereignty, she added.
“India’s refusal to extradite Sheikh Hasina will have far-reaching implications as far as the power dynamics in South Asia are concerned,” she said.

“Bangladesh will then in all probability deepen its regional alliances with China and Pakistan, leaving India behind to face the hard truth of their fast diminishing goodwill in the region. If India goes down that route and refuses extradition, its ambition of becoming a regional hegemon, let alone a superpower, may remain a far cry.”
Jon Danilowicz, a former US diplomat to Bangladesh, said that India is unlikely to extradite Sheikh Hasina in the near future due to its own domestic politics.
“The current narrative within India is that Hasina was a steadfast friend who was ousted because of a foreign-sponsored regime change operation,” he said, adding that Hasina’s fall is believed by India to have benefited “pro-Pakistani elements”, who have since embarked on an “anti-Hindu genocide”.
“Having done little to counter this false narrative, the Modi Government now has little room for manoeuvre,” Danilowicz told This Week in Asia. “As time passes and the cost of sheltering Hasina continues to rise, however, India will likely seek a face-saving way out of this dilemma by encouraging her to seek asylum elsewhere.”


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Why India is unlikely to extradite ousted Bangladesh leader Sheikh Hasina

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina checks her watch as she waits for the official opening time to cast her vote in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on January 7, 2024. Photo: AP

A student shouts slogans as demonstrators wave Bangladesh’s national flag during a Martyr March to mark one month since the ousting of Sheikh Hasina, in Dhaka on September 5, 2024. Photo: AFP

Some students, who protested against Sheikh Hasina’s “misrule”, marked her birthday by throwing shoes at a caricatured image of her, on September. 28, 2024. Photo: Shaikh Azizur Rahman

Anti-Hasina graffiti is seen on a wall in Dhaka, drawn by students during the July to August protests. Photo: Shaikh Azizur Rahman

Bangladesh faces election uncertainty amid unrest and weakened police force

Police stand guard at a protest march of job seekers demanding the removal of the age limit for job applications in Dhaka on December 11. Photo: dpa

Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, addresses the 79th United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 27. Photo: Reuters

Protesters shout slogans as they celebrate Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation, in Dhaka, Bangladesh on August 5. Photo: AP

Police stand guard at a protest march of jobseekers demanding the removal of the age limit for job applications in Dhaka. Photo: dpa

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Indian Hindus take part in a protest outside the Bangladesh High Commission in Mumbai on Monday. Photo: AFP

Hindu monks holding a banner take part in a protest rally near the Deputy High Commission of Bangladesh in Kolkata on November 28. Photo: AFP

Police officers stand guard outside the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Tuesday amid the unrest. Photo: AP

Members of Islami Andolan Bangladesh shout slogans during a protest in Dhaka on Tuesday, after a group of Hindus stormed a Bangladesh consulate office in the capital of the northeastern Indian state of Tripura. Photo: AP

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People take part in a protest march demanding protections for Hindus and other minority groups after the expulsion of premier Sheikh Hasina, in Dhaka on November 2. Photo: AFP

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Muhammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh’s interim government. Photo: EPA-EFE

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) with his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina in June. Bilateral ties flourished during Hasina’s 15-year rule. Photo: AP

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This Week in Asia

Politics

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Asia

South Asia

New Delhi’s muted response to a formal extradition request has sparked tensions as India weighs legal and diplomatic risks


New Delhi’s muted response to a formal extradition request has sparked tensions as India weighs legal and diplomatic risks.


Bangladesh

Human rights

Diplomacy