Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has sought a fresh Bangladeshi passport and National Identity Card (NID) ahead of her planned return to the country in December, her party, the Awami League, announced on Monday.
The move comes amid reports that the previous Muhammad Yunus-led interim administration had revoked her existing documents. Hasina, through her legal representatives at London-based Matrix Chambers, has approached the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi, seeking expedited issuance of the documents.
According to the Awami League, the request cited Hasinaโs Bangladeshi nationality and the countryโs obligations under international human rights instruments. The former prime minister has reiterated her intention to return in December and face the legal proceedings against her, after spending more than two years in India.
In a statement, the Awami League said Hasinaโs identity and political journey were inseparably connected to Bangladesh, asserting that her return to her homeland was a matter of national identity and a fundamental right.
Bangladesh pushes for extradition
However, Bangladeshโs State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir last week said Dhaka wanted India to hand over Hasina under the existing extradition treaty, dismissing suggestions that she would require a passport or other travel documents to return.
โWe want Hasina to be handed over. She will be handed over. She is a terrorist. She is a fugitive. There is an active extradition treaty between Bangladesh and India,โ The Daily Star quoted Kobir as saying.
He added that the matter concerned a handover under an ongoing judicial process rather than a visit requiring travel documents.
Earlier in October, Hasina said during a virtual press conference in Washington that she was determined to return to Bangladesh despite the risk of arrest, torture or death. She said she could not remain away while her supporters and ordinary citizens continued to suffer.
โHow risky it is, I don’t care. I have to go back,โ she said.
Hasina, who left Bangladesh following the collapse of her government in August 2024, also thanked the Indian government and people for providing her refuge during the political upheaval, comparing the reception to the support she received after the assassination of several members of her family in 1975.
With inputs from IANS