India has set two conditions before it will help former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina return home from exile, according to a BBC Bangla report.
Hasina, who fled Bangladesh on 5 August 2024 after a mass uprising ended her government, has said she plans to return in December 2026. A Bangladeshi court has sentenced her to death over her government’s crackdown on protesters during the July 2024 uprising.
01. What are India’s two conditions?
According to the BBC Bangla report, published on 12 November and citing unnamed sources in India’s Ministry of External Affairs and military establishment, New Delhi wants:
First, the Bangladesh Army to take charge of bringing her back. Under the proposal, Bangladesh would send a military aircraft to collect Hasina from New Delhi, or its army would receive her at an agreed point along the land border. That would mirror how she left the country in August 2024, aboard a Bangladeshi military aircraft.
Second, a guarantee of a fair legal process. India wants Dhaka to guarantee Hasina the chance to appeal against her death sentence and face a fresh and fair trial, with the proceedings under international scrutiny. “We can never knowingly hand her over to be hanged. Rather, we would want to ensure that she gets an opportunity for a fresh and fair trial,” an unnamed Indian foreign ministry official was quoted as saying.
02. Neither government has confirmed the report
India’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, declined to comment on the report when asked on 13 November, saying: “I have nothing to say on that.” The Bangladesh government, led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, has also not officially responded.
Bangladesh formally asked India to extradite Hasina in December 2024, but New Delhi has not acted on the request. On 9 November, Hasina applied for a fresh passport, her first official contact with the government in Dhaka in two years of exile.
The BBC Bangla report said Indian officials believe a return in December remains unlikely, as Dhaka may not be ready to facilitate it. The report also said Hasina’s announcement of a December return came only after an understanding with Indian authorities.
