Deposed Bangladeshi Leader Sheikh Hasina Indicted for Crimes Against Humanity

Deposed Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been formally indicted on charges of crimes against humanity, according to a report by news agency PTI, citing local media. The indictment comes in connection with last year’s mass uprising, during which hundreds of students were reportedly killed.

The charges were accepted by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), a three-member panel led by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder. Alongside Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan and ex-police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun have also been indicted on five counts related to the violent suppression of the protests.

Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun is currently the only one in custody. Reports from the local news outlet bdnews24 say he has pleaded guilty and requested to become a state witness. Meanwhile, both Hasina and Khan are being tried in absentia.

Hasina fled to India on August 5 last year, just days after her 16-year rule came to a dramatic end amid nationwide protests. The demonstrations were brutally suppressed, and according to a UN Human Rights High Commission fact-finding report, around 1,400 people were killed during the unrest.

Bangladeshi prosecutors formally charged Hasina in June, accusing her of orchestrating a coordinated and systematic crackdown on dissent. Chief prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam told the court that the attacks involved law enforcement and armed members of her party, targeting civilians protesting her government’s rule.

Since her ouster, the 77-year-old former leader has remained in India. She is now facing multiple legal cases in Bangladesh, including charges of mass murder, enforced disappearances, and other alleged crimes against humanity.