ICT Indicts Bangladesh’s Ex-PM Sheikh Hasina in Crimes Against Humanity Case
Charges have also been framed against former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun for their attempts to suppress the July-August student-led protests last year
New Delhi: Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was on Thursday formally indicted in a crimes against humanity case by the country's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT). The Bangladesh government has asked India to hand over Mrs Hasina to it saying New Delhi cannot protect individuals accused of crimes against humanity.
Charges have also been framed against former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun for their attempts to suppress the July-August student-led protests last year. Mamun has pleaded guilty and petitioned to turn state's witness in the case.
The Tribunal has fixed August 3 and 4 dates for next hearing during which there will be opening arguments and first recording of the deposition in the case.
While Hasina and Kamal have been declared “absconding” Mamun is in police custody and was produced before the tribunal on Thursday.
The July 2024 uprising against Mrs Hasina government left at least 1,400 people dead, as per reports. An inquiry conducted by the United Nations Human Rights agency found that Mrs Hasina and other senior officials of the government and Awami League directed and oversaw systematic crackdown on protesters, killing up to 1,400 people and injuring thousands. Both Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League have denied the allegations.
The Awami League has accused Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Jamaat terrorists of using a general students movement to overthrow Hasina government.
Meanwhile, the Muhammad Yunus government in Bangladesh has asked India to hand over Mrs Hasina to them so that she can face trial. Mr Yunus’ Press Secretary Mr Shafiqul Alam urged India to act with conscience and moral clarity, stressing that India can no longer protect an individual who stands credibly accused of crimes against humanity.
"We now urge the Republic of India to act with conscience and moral clarity. For too long, India has refused to comply with Bangladesh’s lawful request for the extradition of Sheikh Hasina. That position is no longer tenable. India can no longer protect an individual who stands credibly accused of crimes against humanity. No regional friendship, no strategic calculus, no political legacy can excuse or obscure the deliberate murder of civilians…We ask that India recognise the weight of this moment and honour the shared values of justice, the rule of law and democratic integrity," said Mr Alam.
He added the people of Bangladesh deserve justice, victims deserve closure and the world should see that no leader, no matter how powerful, is above law.
Mr Alam quoted reports of BBC Eye Investigations that claimed Hasina ordered the shooting of protesting students. The BBC mentioned a leaked audio recording of the phone call in which Hasina, purportedly, is heard ordering to use lethal weapons to control protestors..
The Bangladesh government is using this also as evidence against Hasina.
"The leaked recording, authenticated by world-class audio forensics experts, confirms what so many Bangladeshis have always known in their hearts: that the violence was not spontaneous, nor accidental. It was authorised. The evidence is no longer anecdotal or partisan. It is forensic, verified, and impossible to ignore," said Mr Alam.
Responding to the BBC news the Awami League in a statement said Mr Yunus regime has deliberately prepared this narrative as a weapon to serve its political interests.