Hasina seeks new passport to return to Bangladesh in December, where she faces the death penalty
Bangladesh's ousted leader Sheikh Hasina has asked for a new passport at the country's mission in New Delhi to return next month, but Dhaka has rejected the request. Analysts say the pledge mainly serves to keep her supporters engaged and preserve her political relevance.
Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh's ousted prime minister, who fled to India in August 2024 after a mass uprising, has asked the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi for a new passport and national identity card so she can return home next month. Her existing documents have been revoked. The 79-year-old was sentenced to death in absentia last year for crimes against humanity over the deadly 2024 crackdown on student-led protests, a charge she denies.
The Bangladeshi government has already rejected the request. State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir told Al Jazeera that the country does not issue passports to terrorists and will use the existing extradition arrangements with India to seek her handover. Prosecutor Md Aminul Islam, who secured the death sentence at the International Crimes Tribunal in Dhaka, said on Tuesday that she will be executed if she returns.
What analysts say
Hasina ruled for nearly 20 years and still has support among part of the population. According to the United Nations, more than 1,400 people were killed in the 2024 uprising. Zillur Rahman, president of the Centre for Governance Studies, a Dhaka-based think tank, believes the passport request is mainly about keeping her Awami League party's activists engaged and her control of the party intact. Jon F Danilowicz, a retired US diplomat, said there is no chance she will return in December and called it a bluff. Faiz Sobhan of the Bangladesh Enterprise Institute said an actual return seems inconceivable. Awami League members, meanwhile, say she will come back, though many could not describe a plan.
India's role
India, a close ally of Hasina for decades, has sheltered her since August 2024, which has become a point of contention between the two countries. Dhaka has repeatedly sought her extradition, while New Delhi says it is examining the requests. Analysts differ on whether India would help her return.
A deal with the BNP?
Analysts see little chance of an understanding with the governing Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. BNP adviser Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said Hasina is deluding herself if she thinks she can return.
