New Delhi: India has extended former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visa amid growing calls from Dhaka for her extradition.
The development comes a day after Bangladesh’s interim government said it had revoked the deposed PM’s passport, along with 96 others, for their alleged involvement in enforced disappearances and widespread violence and killings during countrywide protests last year.
Hasina’s visa was extended to let her continue to stay in India, Hindustan Times reported quoting people familiar with the matter. Sources, however, dismissed speculation about Hasina being granted asylum in the country as India does not have a specific law for dealing with refugees and matters such as asylum.
The visa extension process, involving the Union Home Ministry which has to okay such matters, was done through the local Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO).
The 77-year-old Hasina has been living in India since August 5, 2024, when she fled Bangladesh following a massive students-led protest that toppled Awami League’s 16-year regime.
Hasina has been incommunicado since arriving at Hindon airbase on August 5. She was reportedly moved to a safehouse in Delhi.
Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) recently issued arrest warrants for Hasina and a number of former Cabinet ministers, advisers, and military and civil officials for “crimes against humanity and genocide,” setting a February 12 deadline.
Last month, the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus sent a diplomatic note urging India to send back Bangladesh’s deposed PM.
