NEW DELHI, India – Former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has requested a new passport and national identity card from Bangladesh’s diplomatic mission in India, taking a significant step towards her stated intention to return home in December, more than two years after she was ousted from power.
In a letter dated November 9, her lawyers at London-based Matrix Chambers asked Bangladesh’s acting high commissioner in New Delhi, Preeti Rahman, to process applications for the documents. The request follows the reported revocation of Hasina’s existing Bangladeshi passport and national identity card by the country’s previous interim administration.
Hasina told reporters in an earlier interview that she intends to return to Bangladesh and surrender before a court. Her aides said the precise date of her return would be announced after the necessary formalities had been completed.
The passport application marks her first communication of this kind since fleeing Bangladesh in August 2024, when a student-led uprising forced her from office and she travelled to India.
Legal proceedings complicate her planned return
Hasina faces serious legal consequences if she returns to Bangladesh.
In November 2025, the country’s International Crimes Tribunal sentenced her to death in absentia for crimes against humanity over the deadly crackdown on protesters during the 2024 uprising.
The tribunal found her responsible for ordering the suppression of demonstrations that resulted in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries. The United Nations estimated that nearly 1,400 people were killed during the violence.
Hasina has denied wrongdoing and rejected the legitimacy of the proceedings against her.
Her stated intention to return despite the sentence raises questions about her legal position, the possibility of arrest and the proceedings she could face upon arrival.
Extradition dispute between Bangladesh and India
Hasina’s request for new travel documents comes amid an unresolved dispute between Bangladesh and India over her return.
The Bangladeshi government has repeatedly sought her extradition under an existing bilateral treaty. On November 6, Bangladesh’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir said the government expected India to hand her over through the extradition process, arguing that a new passport was not necessary for her return as a wanted former leader.
India has not agreed to hand Hasina over, leaving her future dependent partly on diplomatic negotiations between the two neighbouring countries.
The passport application therefore introduces another dimension to the dispute: Hasina’s lawyers are seeking recognition of her Bangladeshi nationality and the issuance of identity documents, while Dhaka continues to pursue her return through extradition procedures.
Political uncertainty surrounds her return
Hasina’s potential return could deepen political tensions in Bangladesh, where her Awami League party has been banned from participating in the February 2026 election.
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, whose political family has long opposed Hasina, came to power following the election. Several senior Awami League figures have been arrested or remain outside the country.
Although Hasina retains support among sections of the population, her return could create new challenges for the government as it seeks to maintain political stability and address the consequences of the 2024 uprising.
Her lawyers have asked the diplomatic mission to process the passport and identity card applications promptly. However, there has been no confirmation that the documents will be issued or that an arrangement for her return has been agreed.
For now, Hasina’s December return remains her stated intention rather than a confirmed travel arrangement. Her legal proceedings, the extradition dispute and the response of Bangladesh’s diplomatic authorities remain central to whether that plan can proceed.
Primary Sources: United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Human Rights Violations and Abuses related to the Protests of July and August 2024 in Bangladesh
