Extradition of Bangladesh’s deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina could take place via a “well-structured process” that involved “legality”, and that a legal process was “in place”, India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi said on Saturday (October 3, 2026).

Speaking of Ms. Hasina’s presence in India at the Bay of Bengal Conversation, an annual conclave organised by the Dhaka-based Centre for Governance Studies, Mr. Trivedi indicated that Ms. Hasina had sought refuge in India based on consultation among those governing Bangladesh in July-August 2024, and that, “India had hardly any choice.”

“Again and again, the Government of India through the Spokesperson in MEA (Ministry of External Affairs) has replied to this — that there is a process, and that the process involves legality, and it is well-structured. So, as far as that is concerned, the process is on,” Mr. Trivedi said in response to a question from a student at the conclave on Ms. Hasina’s extradition.

The incumbent government of Bangladesh, led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, has demanded several times that Ms. Hasina be extradited to face justice for the July-August 2024 crackdown that led to the death of at least 800 civilians, including many students. A panel under the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights placed the number of fatalities at about 1,400.

“The legal process is there in place, which you can be very sure [about] — India being as vibrant and democratic as Bangladesh is — and you will also respect the legal system, and the legal system is on,” Mr. Trivedi said, adding, “Nobody can give you a time frame [for the extradition].”

India and Bangladesh signed an extradition treaty in 2013, with specified grounds under which it may be halted, including “offence of a political character”.

Mr. Trivedi spoke of the “tragic circumstances” in Bangladesh while referring to India’s decision to provide refuge to Ms. Hasina. “The situation arose because of tragic circumstances in Bangladesh, that must not be repeated anywhere else in the world. At that point in time, Ms. Hasina was still the PM of Bangladesh. We hardly had any choice on that and it was our duty to accept the reality of life,” the High Commissioner said.

He also referred to the abrupt nature of developments in the final moments of the anti-Hasina uprising, adding, “because situations are such, where at times you are not prepared for it”.

On August 5, 2024, Ms. Hasina was first airlifted from near her residence in Bangladesh by a military helicopter and then flown to India by the Bangladesh Air Force aircraft. Mr. Trivedi recalled the involvement of Bangladesh’s then existing government machinery in facilitating Ms. Hasina’s evacuation from Dhaka, and said, “Ms. Hasina was not brought to India by the Indian Air Force or Indian Army.”

“What was our choice? If you would have said no to that, and that we were not going to accept, or if we did not give landing permission, then things would have been different,” Mr. Trivedi said in a session titled ‘Power and Prudence’ on the first day of the three-day conclave being held at Hotel Sonargaon in Dhaka.

Mr. Trivedi, who arrived here as the new High Commissioner of India on June 12, said he would “not dodge” questions on Ms. Hasina’s extradition.

Mr. Trivedi, who arrived here as the new High Commissioner of India on June 12, noted that innocent people had died in Bangladesh in the last days of Ms. Hasina’s rule.

In November 2025, Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal handed death sentences to Ms. Hasina and her Home Minister Asaduzaman Khan Kamal, and on September 15, 2026, to several of her former colleagues, including erstwhile Minister of Road Transport and Bridges, Obaidul Quader.

India and Bangladesh commenced an official conversation on hosting Mr. Rahman in New Delhi after the arrival of the Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka. Meanwhile, Ms. Hasina held a virtual press interaction on August 5 at New Delhi’s Foreign Correspondents Club, her first since she was deposed, which outraged the incumbent government and caused turbulence in bilateral relations between the two neighbouring countries. Mr. Rahman’s government has been urging India to stop Ms. Hasina from engaging in political activities from India.

Ms. Hasina on August 5, 2026 declared that she would return to Bangladesh by December. Mr. Trivedi maintains that a good neighbour would not interfere in the internal affairs of neighbouring States. “Bangladesh is an independent country. It will decide independently with which country it will build and maintain relations,” the High Commissioner said.

(The correspondent is in Bangladesh at the invitation of the Centre for Governance Studies, Dhaka to participate in the 2026 Bay of Bengal Conversation.)

Published – October 03, 2026 07:19 pm IST

Security personnel stand guard in Dhaka. Image used for representation purpose only.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Deposed Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
| Photo Credit: PTI

Bangladesh’s interim government on Tuesday (January 21, 2025) said it will continue its efforts to bring deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina back from India and will seek international intervention if necessary.

Law Adviser Asif Nazrul told reporters at the Secretariat in Dhaka that if New Delhi refuses to return Ms. Hasina, it would constitute a violation of the extradition treaty between Bangladesh and India, the Daily Star newspaper reported.

Ms. Hasina, 77, has been living in India since August 5 last year when she fled Bangladesh following a massive student-led protest that toppled her Awami League’s (AL) 16-year regime. Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has issued arrest warrants for Hasina and several former Cabinet ministers, advisers, and military and civil officials for “crimes against humanity and genocide”.

Last year, Dhaka sent a diplomatic note to New Delhi seeking the extradition of Ms. Hasina.

“We have written a letter for extradition. If India does not extradite Sheikh Hasina, it will be a clear violation of the extradition treaty between Bangladesh and India,” Mr. Nazrul said.

In that case, he said, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will take necessary steps to address the matter within the international community. The foreign ministry is also making efforts and a red alert has already been issued, the law adviser added.

“We are doing everything we can. The government will continue all efforts to bring Sheikh Hasina back. If necessary, international support will be sought,” Mr. Nazrul said.

Under the provisions of the India-Bangladesh extradition treaty, extradition may be refused if the offence is one of a “political character”.

Another clause said a person convicted of an extradition offence may not be extradited unless the person was sentenced to imprisonment or other form of detention for a period of four months or more.

The relations between India and Bangladesh came under strain after the interim government headed by Muhammad Yunus came to power.

India has been expressing concerns over attacks on minorities, especially Hindus, in that country.

In recent weeks, Ms. Hasina has also accused the Yunus-led interim government of perpetrating “genocide” and failing to protect minorities, especially Hindus, since her ouster.

Pedestrians walk past the ‘Adani House’ corporate building in Gurgaon on November 27, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AFP

India was not informed by the United States government about its investigation into the Adani group, said that Ministry of External Affairs on Friday (November 29, 2024), who confirmed that the Indian Embassy in Washington has thus far not received any legal paperwork on the indictments against top Adani officials accused of a conspiracy to bribe Indian officials. Calling it a legal matter between “private firms and individuals, and the US Department of Justice,” the MEA said it was not involved directly, and that it had not been asked for help in the matter by the US, nor had the government sought evidence of the bribery allegations in order to pursue investigations in India.

The statement from the MEA came even as both houses of parliament were adjourned for a fourth day, with the government refusing to make a statement, and the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha rejecting adjournment motions for a debate on the issue. 

“This is a legal matter involving private firms and individuals and the U.S. Department of Justice,” said the MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, responding to a question from The Hindu. “We are not part of it in any manner at this point of time.” 

To another question on whether the government had been served with the arrest warrant issued by a court in New York after a grand jury indicted Adani Chairman Gautam Adani and 7 other officials of the company variously on a number of counts ranging from bribery, conspiracy and securities fraud on November 21, the MEA spokesperson said the Embassy in Washington had not been contacted about the case.

“Obviously there are established procedures and legal avenues in such cases which we believe would be followed. The Government of India was not informed in advance on the issue,” he said, adding, “We have not had any conversation on this particular matter with the US government”.

The U.S. Department of Justice is now expected to initiate proceedings for a trial, although it is unclear how far a change in administration in the US in January will affect the process, and whether there will be other avenues such as allowing the Adani group to pay a fine in lieu of further action. Although the alleged bribery of Indian officials took place in India, US agencies have invoked a Bonds issue in the US and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act to justify its case against the group.  India and the US signed a Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters in 2001, which came into force in 2005, which governs any requests for assistance in cases against citizens in each other’s jurisdictions. 

“Any request by a foreign government for service of summons/arrest warrant is part of mutual legal assistance. Such requests are examined on merits. We have not received any request on this case from the US side,” Mr. Jaiswal clarified.

Responding to the US indictments last week, the Adani group had denied any wrongdoing, and said it would pursue legal recourse. It also disclosed that it has thus far suffered losses of US $55 billion since the indictment was made public in terms of market capitalisation across 11 listed companies.

In a statement to news agency AFP, the group said it had already faced “significant repercussions” , including “international project cancellations, financial market impact and sudden examination from strategic partners, investors and the public”, with a specific reference to Kenya where the government cancelled its contracts for infrastructure and energy. Others like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have announced reviews of Adani contracts.

Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser of Bangladesh interim government, during an interview to PTI.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus has said the interim government would pursue with India ways to resolve the differences over the long-pending Teesta water sharing treaty, as delaying it for years serves no purpose for either nation.

In an interview with PTI at his official residence in Dhaka, Mr. Yunus stated that the water-sharing issue between the two countries must be resolved according to international norms, emphasising that lower riparian countries like Bangladesh have specific rights that they seek to uphold.

“By sitting over this issue (water sharing), it is not serving any purpose. If I know how much water I will get, even if I am not happy and sign it, it would be better. This issue has to be resolved,” he said.

Replying to a query on whether the interim government would push for resolving the issues over the Teesta water-sharing treaty at the earliest, he said the new regime will pursue it.

“Push is a big word; I am not saying it. We will pursue it. But we have to sit together and resolve it,” he told PTI.

India and Bangladesh were set to sign a deal on Teesta water sharing during then-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Dhaka in 2011, but West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee declined to endorse it, citing a scarcity of water in her State.

“This is not a new issue but a very old issue. We have spoken on this issue on several occasions. The discussions began during the period of Pakistan’s rule. While we all wanted this treaty to be finalised, even the Indian government was ready for it. However, the state government of West Bengal was not ready for it. We need to resolve it,” he said.

Mr. Yunus reiterated that lower riparian countries like Bangladesh have specific rights that they seek to uphold.

“We have to resolve this issue according to international norms. The lower riparian countries have certain rights, and we want those rights,” he said.

His remarks come days after the interim government’s Adviser on Water Resources, Syeda Rizwana Hasan, told PTI that Dhaka would push for restarting the dialogue regarding the Teesta water-sharing treaty with New Delhi and asserted that both countries should adhere to international principles regarding water-sharing between upper riparian and lower riparian countries.

Speaking about the flood situation in Bangladesh and reports from Dhaka blaming India for the floods, Mr. Yunus said that until the treaty is signed, a humanitarian approach can be adopted to deal with such crises.

“When the High Commissioner (of India) came to meet me, I said that we can work on better management to see how the situation can be controlled during the floods. For such coordination between two countries, we don’t need any treaty.” “We can work on this together on humanitarian grounds and resolve this, as this will ease the suffering of the masses. Such humanitarian steps would really help,” he said.

Monsoon rainfall-triggered floods in deltaic Bangladesh and upstream Indian regions have killed several people and marooned or affected nearly three million others in Bangladesh, posing a huge administrative challenge to the newly installed interim government amid a political transition.

India has described as factually incorrect the reports from Bangladesh that the current flood situation in certain parts of the country has been caused by the opening of a dam on the Gumti River in Tripura.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi stated that floods in the shared rivers between the two countries are a “shared” problem affecting people on both sides and require close mutual cooperation to resolve.

Speaking about the contentious issue of border killings, Yunus condemned it and said killing is not a solution to dealing with it.

Mr. Yunus described the alleged killings of Bangladeshi citizens at India’s border as “callousness”.

“Killing someone is not a solution, as there are legal ways to deal with this. There has to be a ground mechanism and legal procedure to handle it. This is a one-sided thing. No one is crossing the border to capture your country; those who are being killed by shooting are just couriers. This is callousness. This has to stop,” he said.

The Border Security Force (BSF) of India has accused Bangladeshi smugglers and infiltrators of crossing over the border and attacking Indian forces when challenged.

They have raised the issue with the Bangladesh counterpart BGB on several occasions. West Bengal shares a total of 2,217 kilometres of its border with Bangladesh, along with Tripura (856 km), Meghalaya (443 km), Assam (262 km), and Mizoram (318 km).

Deaths at times occur along the Bangladesh-India border due to alleged infiltrators trying to cross into India illegally, cross-border firing, and cattle smuggling.