No bail, no appeal for Hasina: ICT

Former prime minister Sheikh Hasina would be taken directly to prison if she is returned to Bangladesh from India under the bilateral extradition treaty, with no legal provision allowing her to surrender before a court, Chief Prosecutor of the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) Md Aminul Islam said on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters at his office, Aminul said the Bangladesh government had already requested India to hand over Hasina under the extradition treaty between the two countries.

“If she is under the control of the Indian government, she cannot return on her own.

Either she will be handed over to the Bangladesh government under the extradition treaty or she will be pushed back,” he said.

The chief prosecutor said that if Hasina is returned under the treaty, she would be arrested immediately and sent to prison.

He also said Hasina, who has been sentenced to death by the tribunal, would not be eligible for bail.

“So far, there is no precedent in Bangladesh of granting bail to a convict sentenced to death,” he said.

Aminul further said there is no legal provision allowing Hasina to surrender before the court after returning to Bangladesh.

He said the former prime minister had also lost her right to appeal because no appeal was filed within the statutory time limit.

“Section 21(3) of the International Crimes Tribunal Act clearly states that no appeal can be filed after 30 days. If there is no right to appeal, the sentence will remain in force,” he said.

The chief prosecutor added that, under the tribunal’s verdict, all of Hasina’s movable and immovable assets in Bangladesh had been confiscated in favour of the state.

“If she has money in banks or any immovable property in Bangladesh, ownership no longer rests with her,” he said.

Providing an update on other cases before the tribunal, Aminul said the investigation into the case relating to the deaths during the Hefazat-e-Islam rally at Shapla Chattar in Motijheel on 5 May 2013 had been completed.

He said the formal investigation report would be submitted to the tribunal on 21 July.

The chief prosecutor also said investigations into the tribunal’s 10 major ongoing cases, including those relating to the alleged atrocities and crimes against humanity committed during the July-August 2024 mass uprising, were in their final stages.

The investigation reports in those cases are expected to be submitted to the tribunal in the coming weeks, he added.