Highlights:
- Bangladesh’s interim government plans to ask Interpol for a Red Notice against Sheikh Hasina and Asaduzzaman Kamal.
- Both leaders were sentenced to death in absentia for alleged crimes during the 2024 protests.
- Dhaka will formally request India to extradite them; India has not responded yet.
- India may deny extradition because the treaty allows refusal in political cases.
Hasina and her party say the verdict is politically motivated and unfair. Bangladesh's interim government, led by Muhammad Yunus, is preparing to ask Interpol for help in extraditing the former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal from India.
These moves come shortly after the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) in Dhaka sentenced both of them to death in absentia for crimes against humanity linked to the July-August 2024 protests.
Multiple Bangladeshi news outlets reported that authorities plan to request Interpol to issue a Red Notice for both Hasina and Kamal. ICT prosecutor Gazi MH Tamim said that an application had already been submitted based on arrest warrant, and now the government wants a new Red Notice based on the tribunal's conviction order.
Hasina and Kamal fled Bangladesh after violent student protests in 2024 were taken over by Islamist groups, eventually forcing the government out of power. Hasina is believed to be living in India's capital, New Delhi, while Kamal is also thought to be somewhere in India, though he has not confirmed his location.
Bangladesh's foreign ministry says it is preparing to formally write to India within days. Officials also said that Dhaka had already sent a similar request in December 2024 but never received a reply. India issued a careful statement, saying it supports the 'best interests of the people of Bangladesh' and will engage with all sides.
Even though India and Bangladesh have a 2013 extradition treaty, experts say India could refuse the request if the case appears political, something both Hasina and her Awami League party strongly claim. They argue that the tribunal is controlled by an unelected government and that the verdict was biased.
Hasina and Kamal must file appeals within 30 days under tribunal rules. The world is now watching how India responds, as the decision could shape the political future of Bangladesh's longest-serving prime minister.
