DHAKA, Oct 17 (Alliance News): A Bangladeshi court on Thursday issued an arrest warrant for exiled former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India in August after being ousted by a student-led uprising.
The court has demanded that Hasina be presented on November 18 to face charges of human rights violations during her 15-year rule.
Mohammad Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor of Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), stated that the charges against Hasina include the mass detention and extrajudicial killings of political opponents between July and August.
Hasina, 77, has not been seen in public since her escape and was last reported near New Delhi, India.
Bangladesh has revoked Hasina’s diplomatic passport and may seek her extradition under the bilateral treaty with India.
However, the treaty allows India to refuse extradition for offenses of a “political character.” Hasina’s government originally established the ICT in 2010, which has faced criticism from the United Nations and rights groups for procedural flaws and alleged use to suppress political rivals.
Several cases involving the “mass murder” of protesters during her tenure are currently under investigation by the court.