BANGLADESH – A Bangladesh court on Thursday charged the ex-premier Sheikh Hasina in absentia for crimes against humanity, together with 2 others.

A three-member bench of the International Crimes Tribunal, headed by Justice Md. Golam Mortuza Mazumder, ordered charges to be framed against the exiled leader Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun.

The special tribunal set up to try Hasina, 77, began proceedings in June. She is accused of being responsible for ordering state forces to carry out actions that led to the killings and injuries during the uprising.

Hasina and Khan are said to be staying in India, while former police chief Mamun is in custody.

The defendants did not have their own legal counsel present; instead, a state-appointed lawyer represented them during the hearing.

The former police chief has admitted to involvement in the crimes, and now serves as a witness for prosecution in the trial.

According to a report by the UN human rights office, up to 1,400 people were killed in the unrest between July and August 2024, including children.

A recent media investigation linked Hasina to the use of lethal force during the protests that led to the fall of her government, intensifying calls for her deportation from India to face trial.

Hasina has been in India since her government was removed on Aug. 5, 2024. Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus later formed a transitional government, which has formally requested her return. Delhi, however, has yet to respond affirmatively.

Last month, Yunus announced that elections in the South Asian country will be held in April 2026.