India unlikely to extradite Hasina: Adviser Mahfuj

Though Bangladesh is expecting a reply from India regarding its request for former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s extradition, interim government Adviser Mahfuj Alam on Sunday said they heard that India would not return her.

"Our observation is that they have made a political decision that they will not return her. We are hearing as such," the adviser said when asked whether the issue was discussed or whether they have any observation regarding Hasina’s stay in India.

The adviser was talking to reporters after attending a foreign policy dialogue on "Establishing New Bangladesh: Internal Reforms and Foreign Policy" moderated by Foreign Secretary Md Jashim Uddin.

Information and Broadcasting Adviser Nahid Islam also joined the dialogue.

Bangladesh was supposed to send a reminder after a certain period if no reply is received from New Delhi.

“Surely, we will wait until a certain period. The diplomatic letter (note verbale) was handed over on Monday only. A reminder will be given writing again if no reply comes (from Indian side),” spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Rafiqul Alam told reporters while responding to a question at the weekly briefing recently.

He said the government will take the next step based on the reply from the Indian side. "At this moment, we won’t make any comments as we will wait for the reply.”

“If you look at the extradition treaty and so far I remember, there is no mention about time limit,” said the spokesperson, adding that they have not received any reply from the Indian side as of now.

Adviser Mahfuj Alam said they want a "pragmatic relationship" with all countries, with a focus on strengthening negotiations capacity, and avoid the "knee-jerk foreign policy" that Bangladesh witnessed in the past. "We want to boost our capacity to enhance bargaining strength in the international arena," he said.

The adviser emphasised national security, integrity and sovereignty, stating that the government aims for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to represent Bangladesh's interests rather than serve any party agenda.

The government, he said, puts Bangladesh's interest on top of its priorities.

Spokesperson for India’s Ministry of External Affairs Randhir Jaiswal on 23 December confirmed that they received the extradition request for Sheikh Hasina from the interim government of Bangladesh.

Hasina is facing over 100 cases with a wide range of charges, including murder, genocide and crimes against humanity in charge of killings during the July uprising that led to make her flee to India on 5 August.

Bangladesh and India signed an extradition treaty in 2013, which was later amended in 2016, providing a legal framework for such requests.

In July 2016, Bangladesh and India amended Article 10 (3) of their bilateral Extradition Treaty to facilitate the swift extradition of fugitive criminals between the two nations.

On 8 December, Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam said they would formally approach India seeking former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's extradition after completing the required legal procedures.

"Our government's position on the extradition of Sheikh Hasina is very clear. We want to bring Sheikh Hasina back to the country to face the law," he said during a media briefing at the Foreign Service Academy.