DHAKA: A Bangladeshi court issued an arrest warrant on Thursday for exiled former leader Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India in August following her ousting by a student-led revolution.
Chief prosecutor of Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal, Mohammad Tajul Islam, stated, “The court has ordered the arrest of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and instructed her to be brought before the court on November 18.”
Hasina, 77, ruled for 15 years, a period marked by widespread human rights abuses, including the mass detention and extrajudicial killings of political opponents.
“Sheikh Hasina was instrumental in the massacres, killings, and crimes against humanity committed between July and August,” Islam said, describing it as a “remarkable day.”
Hasina has not been seen publicly since fleeing Bangladesh, with her last known location at a military airbase near New Delhi, India. Her presence in India has stirred tensions with Bangladesh, which has since revoked her diplomatic passport.
While Bangladesh and India have an extradition treaty allowing her return to face trial, the treaty contains a clause permitting refusal if the offense is deemed “political.”
Hasina’s government controversially established the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in 2010 to investigate atrocities from the 1971 war of independence. The tribunal, criticized by the UN and human rights groups for procedural flaws, was seen as a tool to eliminate political rivals. Multiple cases accusing Hasina of orchestrating the mass killing of protesters are currently under investigation.
