India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi on Saturday explained why India gave shelter to former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after she fled the country in August 2024. His remarks came as Bangladesh continues to seek Hasina’s extradition, with New Delhi saying the request is being examined through a legal process.
Indian Envoy Reveals Details On Sheikh Hasina Shelter
According to ANI, speaking at the Bay of Bengal Conversation in Dhaka, Trivedi said India had a duty as a neighbouring country to accept her at a time when she was still Bangladesh’s prime minister. “At that point in time, she (Hasina) was still the prime minister of Bangladesh. We had hardly any choice on that. It was our duty as a neighbour to accept the reality of life, because situations are such where at times you are not prepared for it,” Trivedi noted.
He also questioned what India could have done at the time, given the situation in Bangladesh. ‘What was our choice? If you would have said that no, we are not going to accept, we don’t give landing permission. Things would have been I don’t know what,” he said. Trivedi further clarified that Hasina was not brought to India by the Indian Air Force or the Indian Army. Instead, a Bangladesh Air Force aircraft carried her to India on August 5, 2024, as the protests intensified.
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No Timeline Hasina's Extradition
Addressing queries over Bangladesh’s repeated requests for Hasina’s extradition, Trivedi said India cannot provide a specific timeline. He said the request is being handled through an established legal process. “Nobody can give you a time frame (over Hasina’s return)," Trivedi said. He emphasised that the Indian government has repeatedly made its position clear that the extradition request is under examination.
“Again and again, the government of India has replied to this that there is a process, and the process is legal, and it is well structured,” Trivedi said. Hasina, 79, has been living in India since she left Bangladesh after her government collapsed in August 2024.
After the Bangladesh Nationalist Party government came to power following the February 12 elections, the demand for her extradition was renewed. Earlier, Bangladesh Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed had said Hasina would be arrested immediately if she returned to Bangladesh and that the court verdict against her would be implemented.
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