BNP says Sheikh Hasina’s presence in India will not deter New Delhi-Dhaka ties: Report

The presence of Bangladesh’s deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in India will not “deter” Dhaka from pursuing its broader relations with New Delhi, Bangladesh Nationalist Party general secretary Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told The Hindu on Monday.

Alamgir added that Dhaka’s relation with New Delhi will not be “captive” of one matter.

His comments come a day before the Bangladesh Nationalist Party is set to form the next government in the country. Tarique Rahman, the chairperson of the party, will be sworn in as the country’s prime minister on Tuesday.

An alliance led by the party swept the parliamentary elections held on February 12, winning 212 out of 299 constituencies. The Jamaat-e-Islami-led coalition emerged as the main Opposition with 77 seats.

This was the first national election in Bangladesh since Hasina was ousted and fled to India in August 2024. Her ouster came after several weeks of widespread student-led protests against her Awami League government. She had been in power for 16 years.

Nobel laureate economist Muhammad Yunus subsequently took over as the head of Bangladesh’s interim government. With the elections now complete, the interim government’s term will come to an end.

Ties between New Delhi and Dhaka had been strained after Hasina had fled to India.

Bangladesh has repeatedly demanded that India extradite Hasina after a tribunal in that country sentenced her to death for alleged crimes against humanity. Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal held Hasina guilty of having ordered a deadly crackdown on the protests against her government.

In December, Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that it was for Hasina to decide whether she wanted to return to Bangladesh.

Speaking to The Hindu on Monday, Alamgir said that Bangladesh would expedite the projects that were in its interest and would also intensify its development partnership with India.

“We believe that Hasina has really committed serious human rights violations,” the newspaper quoted him as saying. “There is a popular demand to punish her and we believe that India should hand her over to us.”

He added: “But not handing over Sheikh Hasina to Bangladesh will not be a deterrent to build broader relation including trade and commercial ties. We want to build even better ties.”

The general secretary of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party also said that there was a legal process for Hasina, her ministers and bureaucrats who have been accused of carrying out murders and criminal acts during the uprising in 2024, the newspaper reported.

This process will continue, he added.

After the Bangladesh Nationalist Party won the election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday was the first national leader to congratulate Rahman on his party’s victory. In a social media post, he “reaffirmed India’s continued commitment to the peace, progress and prosperity of both our peoples”.

In response, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Saturday said it was looking forward to “engaging constructively” with India to advance the bilateral relationship.

It also invited Modi, along with the heads of government of 12 other countries, to Rahman’s swearing-in ceremony. However, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will travel to Bangladesh to represent India at the ceremony, as Modi has meetings scheduled with French President Emmanuel Macron in Mumbai on Tuesday.

On Saturday, Humayun Kabir, adviser to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party chief, told PTI that with Hasina no longer in power, his country now wanted to reset ties with India. He added that both countries should work together for mutual benefit.

However, he asserted: “The change has to come from the mindset in India.”

Kabir urged India to ensure that its territory is not used by Hasina or other Awami League leaders in ways that could hurt Bangladesh’s stability.