Sheikh Hasina indicted over deaths of protesters in Bangladesh
The tribunal fixed August 3 for the prosecution’s opening statement and August 4 for recording witnesses’ statements.
- Jul 10, 2025,
- Updated Jul 10, 2025 4:26 PM IST
A special tribunal indicted Bangladesh’s ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by accepting the charges filed against her. A three-member panel, headed by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder, indicted Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun on charges of crimes against humanity that was filed against them in connection with a mass uprising that led to the deaths of hundreds of students.
Hasina and Khan were tried in absentia.
The tribunal opened the trial on June 5 and asked Hasina to appear before it. Authorities published newspaper advertisements requesting Hasina, who has been in exile in India, and Khan to appear before the tribunal.
Hasina has been in exile since August 5, 2024. Bangladesh’s interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, sent a formal request to India for Hasina’s extradition, but India has not responded.
Al-Mamun was arrested and appeared in court on Thursday while the judges indicted them. On Thursday, Al-Mamun pleaded guilty and told the tribunal that he would make a statement in favour of the prosecution at a later stage.
The prosecution submitted a leaked audio of Hasina and other documents as evidence to the tribunal. The tribunal fixed August 3 for the prosecution’s opening statement and August 4 for recording witnesses’ statements.
Meanwhile, the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) found Hasina guilty in contempt of court, after which the quantum of punishment was decided by a three-member bench of the International Crimes Tribunal-1, headed by Chairman Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder. The prosecution had argued that the statement made by her in a leaked phone call amounted to contempt of court because it threatened the judicial process and sought to intimidate those involved in ongoing war crimes trials related to last year’s mass uprising in the neighbouring country.
A special tribunal indicted Bangladesh’s ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by accepting the charges filed against her. A three-member panel, headed by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder, indicted Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun on charges of crimes against humanity that was filed against them in connection with a mass uprising that led to the deaths of hundreds of students.
Hasina and Khan were tried in absentia.
The tribunal opened the trial on June 5 and asked Hasina to appear before it. Authorities published newspaper advertisements requesting Hasina, who has been in exile in India, and Khan to appear before the tribunal.
Hasina has been in exile since August 5, 2024. Bangladesh’s interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, sent a formal request to India for Hasina’s extradition, but India has not responded.
Al-Mamun was arrested and appeared in court on Thursday while the judges indicted them. On Thursday, Al-Mamun pleaded guilty and told the tribunal that he would make a statement in favour of the prosecution at a later stage.
The prosecution submitted a leaked audio of Hasina and other documents as evidence to the tribunal. The tribunal fixed August 3 for the prosecution’s opening statement and August 4 for recording witnesses’ statements.
Meanwhile, the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) found Hasina guilty in contempt of court, after which the quantum of punishment was decided by a three-member bench of the International Crimes Tribunal-1, headed by Chairman Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder. The prosecution had argued that the statement made by her in a leaked phone call amounted to contempt of court because it threatened the judicial process and sought to intimidate those involved in ongoing war crimes trials related to last year’s mass uprising in the neighbouring country.