Bangladesh says keeping Hasina in India violates extradition treaty

Bangladesh said on Tuesday that it will consider India’s failure to repatriate former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina a breach of an extradition treaty between the two countries.

Hasina, who fled to India on August 5 last year following student-led protests that toppled her Awami League (AL) regime, faces charges of mass murder and enforced disappearances in Bangladesh’s local courts.

India and Bangladesh signed an extradition treaty in 2013 under which deportation takes place in cases of legal requests.

“We have written an official letter to India seeking the extradition of former Prime Minister Hasina. If India does not deport her, it will be a clear violation of the extradition treaty between Bangladesh and India,” law adviser Asif Nazrul told reporters in the capital Dhaka.

He added that the Foreign Ministry would decide how to address the situation in the international community.

“We have already sent a request to Interpol to issue a red alert against Hasina. We will do everything in our power to bring her back to face legal action,” Nazrul said.

India has yet to respond to Bangladesh’s formal request to return Hasina.

The International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh, established by Hasina’s administration to prosecute crimes against humanity, issued two arrest warrants against her for her alleged involvement in mass killings and enforced disappearances.

It also ordered authorities to produce Hasina before the court by February 12.

A report submitted by the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearance, formed under the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, found evidence of Hasina’s role as an “instructor” in the forced disappearances reported during her 15-year rule.

Hasina, however, has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Nazrul also said that all lawsuits filed under the country’s Digital Security Act (DSA), which was introduced during Hasina’s administration, would be withdrawn by February this year.

“All the cases under the act will be withdrawn,” he said, adding that all politically motivated “ ghost cases” across the country would also be dismissed.

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Source: TRT