Sheikh Hasina must return to Bangladesh to face her sentence

Detailed summary

Delhi should ensure that its territory is not used to incite violence in Bangladesh or threaten its people.

For families who lost relatives in Bangladesh’s July-August 2024 uprising, Sheikh Hasina’s presence in India is far more than just a question of political refuge. Some are caring for injured relatives, while others have been left devastated by their losses. Parents have rooms that are now empty. When the ousted prime minister speaks to Bangladeshis from India, the question arises: Why should those who paid the price for democracy have to watch the very person they hold responsible for their suffering continue to intervene in Bangladesh’s politics from abroad?

In February 2025, the UN Human Rights Office estimated that as many as 1,400 people may have been killed during the 2024 uprising, with thousands more injured. It identified systematic repression by the former government, the security forces and violent elements of the Awami League, and concluded that there was an official policy of violent suppression that warranted further investigation into potential crimes against humanity. These were international findings of fact, not a criminal verdict.

Subsequent domestic proceedings dealt with individual responsibility. In November 2025, Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal found Hasina guilty of crimes against humanity, including instigating and abetting the atrocities and ordering lethal force against protesters. It also held her responsible under the doctrine of superior command responsibility and sentenced her to death in absentia. She has called the trial politically motivated. Her denial in no way diminishes the victims’ right to justice. Bangladesh has requested her extradition from India, but she remains there.

Under Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, the government is attempting to repair a damaged economy and to re-establish a political culture that has been badly scarred by years of autocratic rule. Yet Hasina’s supporters abroad continue to promote the prospect of her political comeback on social media.

The elected government and all political organisations…

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Opening of the article, excerpted from Al Jazeera. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.