DHAKA: A Bangladeshi court has issued a second arrest warrant for exiled former leader Sheikh Hasina, this time for her alleged role in enforced disappearances, the chief prosecutor said on Monday.

Dhaka has already issued an arrest warrant on charges of crimes against humanity for 77-year-old Hasina, who fled to old ally India in August after she was toppled by a student-led revolution. Her 15-year tenure saw widespread human rights abuses, including the mass detention and extrajudicial killings of her political opponents.

Tajul Islam, chief prosecutor of the domestic International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), said the second warrant relates to enforced disappearances during her rule. More than 500 people were allegedly abducted by Bangladeshi security personnel, with some detained in secret facilities for years.

Victims have begun coming forward since Hasina’s ouster with harrowing accounts of their ordeals. “The court issued a warrant against Sheikh Hasina and 11 others, including her military adviser, military personnel, and other law enforcement officials,” Islam told reporters.

Bangladesh asked India in December to send Hasina back to face trial, a demand to which Delhi declined to respond. Islam said the court wanted to go ahead with the trial.

“We want to ensure the trial concludes as soon as possible, but that doesn’t mean we will break the law or impose a verdict without due process,” he told reporters.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2025