Sheikh Hasina’s passport application being verified: Home Minister

The authenticity and legal basis of applications by ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina for a passport and national identity card (NID), reportedly to facilitate her return to Bangladesh, are being examined, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed has said.

He made the remarks at a press briefing on contemporary issues at the Ministry of Home Affairs today, Monday.

“I have also heard about the matter. Fugitive convict Sheikh Hasina has reportedly applied for a passport and an NID. However, I have not yet been able to verify whether this is true. The ministries of foreign affairs and law are looking into the matter,” the minister said.

Salahuddin Ahmed said the government would examine all relevant legal provisions, including the legal basis for such applications, whether they had actually been submitted properly and whether she was entitled to apply, before the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of Law took any steps.

The home minister said the government had written to the Indian government through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in accordance with the extradition treaty between the two countries, seeking the return of the convicted accused from the country where she had taken refuge, so that she could be brought back in accordance with the law.

Asked about crude bomb explosions at various locations, the home minister said, “The fallen forces occasionally attack some buses and establishments in an attempt to create instability in the country. The police are taking legal action and thwarting such attempts.”

Earlier today, a Reuters report said Sheikh Hasina had sought a new passport and NID to return to Bangladesh. According to a letter obtained by Reuters, she submitted applications for the documents at the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi, India, today, Monday.

This is the first time Sheikh Hasina has made such an application since fleeing to India on 5 August 2024 in the face of the student-public mass uprising.