Hasina's extradition a legal matter, reiterates India's external affairs ministry
The MEA spokesperson did not directly answer whether Bangladesh has sent the ICT documents needed for the extradition process.
India's External Affairs Ministry today (7 October) reiterated that the extradition of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina is a "legal matter".
"Insofar as the extradition is concerned, this is a legal matter. There are legalities involved in it," India's Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a biweekly media briefing in New Delhi.
His remarks came in response to a question about whether Bangladesh had sent India the documents related to Hasina's trial by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), which sentenced her to death. The question also asked whether the documents were needed to begin the extradition process.
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Jaiswal was also asked about recent remarks by Bangladesh's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir, who said that the activities of Hasina and her party activists in India were the main challenge to Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's planned visit to Delhi.
In response, Jaiswal said, "I would like to reiterate that our approach to Bangladesh is that we want to have a forward-looking, constructive and positive relationship with Bangladesh with a people-centric focus.
"That is what is driving our engagement with Bangladesh right now," the MEA spokesman added.
Hasina has been in India since 5 August 2024, when she resigned as prime minister and left Bangladesh for Delhi with her sister Sheikh Rehana amid the 2024 July Uprising.
Her continued stay in India has since remained a major issue in Bangladesh-India relations, with Dhaka seeking her extradition.
