DHAKA: Bangladeshi judges are set to deliver the verdict in the high-profile crimes against humanity trial of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina on November 17, the chief prosecutor announced Thursday. Hasina, 78, has remained in India and defied court orders to return for the trial, which accuses her of ordering a deadly crackdown on a student-led uprising in 2024.
The trial, conducted in absentia since June 1, included months of testimony alleging Hasina orchestrated mass killings that resulted in up to 1,400 deaths, according to the United Nations. Prosecutors have filed five charges under Bangladeshi law, seeking the death penalty if she is found guilty. Hasina has denied all allegations, calling the proceedings a “jurisprudential joke.”
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Her co-accused include former interior minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, also a fugitive, and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who is in custody and has pleaded guilty. Chief prosecutor Tajul Islam said the verdict marks the final phase of a long judicial process and expressed hope that justice would be served.
Tensions are high ahead of elections scheduled for February. Hasina’s outlawed Awami League called for a nationwide lockdown, while security forces have been heavily deployed around Dhaka courts, with armoured vehicles manning checkpoints. The capital has seen a surge in crude bomb attacks targeting government-linked buildings, buses, and Christian sites.
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Bangladesh’s foreign ministry also summoned India’s envoy, urging New Delhi to prevent Hasina from speaking to journalists, accusing her of spreading hatred and undermining bilateral relations.