'Worried about external support for Sheikh Hasina': Md. Yunus on India's backing for former Bangladesh PM

When asked if India might extradite Hasina, Yunus said he believed New Delhi would likely continue to host her “unless there’s an unavoidable legal obligation.”

Bangladesh interim leader, Muhammad Yunus, recently voiced concern over the likely return of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from exile in India, warning that “external forces” might attempt to engineer her political comeback.

“We are always worried about that,” Yunus said during an interview with US journalist Mehdi Hasan in September, suggesting that Hasina’s long-time foreign allies could still be backing her return.

“They have supported her all along… and probably still hope she’ll re-enter Bangladesh as a victorious leader,” he added.

Deposed PM Hasina, 78, has been living in India since August 2024, after a mass student-led uprising toppled her Awami League government. Earlier this week, a special tribunal in Dhaka issued arrest warrants for her and 29 others on charges of crimes against humanity, including alleged enforced disappearances during her tenure.

During the interview, Yunus also revealed that he has personally urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to prevent Hasina from making political remarks while in India.

“I told Modi two things, you want to keep her, that’s your choice. But ensure she doesn’t speak about us or about Bangladesh. He said, ‘Social media I cannot control,’” Yunus said.

When asked if India might extradite Hasina, Yunus said he believed New Delhi would likely continue to host her “unless there’s an unavoidable legal obligation.”

Notably, Yunus’ comments come amid mounting criticism from international and domestic rights organisations over his interim government’s alleged use of anti-terror laws to stifle dissent.

The Human Rights Watch (HRW), on October 9, accused the Yunus administration of “weaponising the recently amended Anti-Terrorism Act” to arrest supporters of the deposed Awami League. It urged the UN to press Dhaka for the release of those “arbitrarily detained.”

A separate report by the Bangladesh Human Rights Support Society (HRSS) described the human rights situation as “rapidly deteriorating,” citing incidents of political violence, mob attacks, and suppression of free speech throughout 2025.

HRW drew attention to the August 28 arrests of 16 respected figures, including 1971 Liberation War veterans, journalists, and academics, who were detained from a discussion hosted by Mancha 71, a civic platform celebrating Bangladesh’s independence.

Yunus, however, strongly dismissed these allegations, asserting that “there are no restrictions on freedom of expression in Bangladesh.”

The HRSS report documented 152 mob lynchings and 130 deaths in 239 incidents of mob violence this year. It also reported 22 attacks on minority communities, including vandalism of Hindu temples and desecration of Sufi shrines, as well as over 50 cases of attacks on journalists.

Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, was sworn in as Chief Advisor on August 8, 2024, just days after Hasina’s government was ousted during the violent “July Uprising” led by student protesters. Soon after taking office, he dissolved the Awami League, a move HRW condemned as “a draconian misuse of anti-terrorism powers.”

Back home, the interim chief is in a tense standoff with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia. The BNP is demanding national elections in December or February, but Yunus has insisted that polls will not be held before April.

On the other hand, student leaders who led the 2024 uprising have formed a new political party. They are pushing for deep electoral reforms and a possible rewrite of the constitution, warning that they will not accept any election unless these demands are addressed, according to AP.

Yunus has dismissed much of the criticism as “fake news” and cautioned against accepting reports at face value. He has also criticised the BNP, comparing its tactics to those of Hasina’s Awami League.

Hasina, now facing multiple criminal cases in absentia, continues to live in India as a political exile.