Bangladesh court issues arrest warrants for Hasina and 45 others

# Bangladesh court issues arrest warrants for Hasina and 45 others

On the event date, 2024-10-17, a special court in Dhaka ordered arrest warrants for former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and 45 other people, escalating legal pressure on the former leader after weeks of upheaval forced her out of the country.

The AP report said the International Crimes Tribunal issued the warrants on charges of crimes against humanity linked to a student-led uprising in July and August. Prosecutor B.M. Sultan Mahmud said the petitions covered Hasina alone in one filing and 45 additional figures, including close aides, in a second filing. The tribunal's chief judge, Golam Mortuza Majumdar, issued the orders in the presence of other judges, according to the prosecutor.

Hasina fled to India on Aug. 5 after violent protests over government job quotas. AP reported that hundreds of people died during those demonstrations, and that prosecutors say Hasina, her aides and security agencies were responsible for killing protesters and others. Those allegations remain central to the interim government's effort to redraw the legal and political order after her departure.

The case also shows how the post-Hasina system is trying to consolidate authority. The tribunal operates under Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, the country's interim leader, and the government has promised to prosecute Hasina and members of her administration for alleged crimes committed during the uprising. AP said the government has also invited the United Nations to help investigate the killings.

There was no immediate reaction from Hasina's Awami League party, according to the report. That silence matters because the legal moves against the former prime minister are not only judicial events but also tests of how her political camp responds from exile and how much leverage it retains inside Bangladesh.

The AP report noted that Hasina faces more than 100 cases, including some tied to crimes against humanity, and that it is not yet clear whether India would respond to an extradition request. That uncertainty leaves the warrants in a legally potent but politically unresolved position. Bangladesh's foreign affairs adviser said the government would try to take necessary steps to bring her back, but no immediate extradition process was described.

The tribunal's renewed activity also fits a broader push to revisit past abuses. AP said the new panel of prosecutors and judges was reconstituted after the interim government took power. The article connected the tribunal's current work with its earlier handling of war-crimes cases involving Islamist leaders from the independence era, underscoring the institution's long history as an instrument of national reckoning.

For now, the warrants stand as one of the clearest signs that the post-uprising authorities are willing to pursue the former prime minister at the highest legal level. Whether those warrants lead to extradition, trial or prolonged standoff with India remains open.