Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had to leave her country after heavy violence and coup in Bangladesh. Hasina is currently taking refuge in India. But she will have to find a new place very soon. The reason is that Bangladesh is constantly demanding to send Hasina back. However, no such demand has officially come before the Indian government. In fact, UAE leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has pardoned 57 Bangladeshi citizens convicted of participating in protests in his country. All of them were sentenced to jail.
Abu Dhabi ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan took this decision after a telephone conversation with Bangladesh interim Prime Minister Mohammad Yunus last week.
Sheikh Hasina is currently in India. It is not so easy for Sheikh Hasina to take refuge in any other country now. The reason for this is that the Yunus government has canceled her diplomatic visa. Earlier it was reported that Sheikh Hasina could go to UAE. But the decision taken by the UAE after accepting the Yunus government, it is clear that the way to that country is also closed for Sheikh Hasina. If sources are to be believed, India has talked to the UAE on the issue of Sheikh Hasina. But so far there has been no success in this matter. The way UAE has accepted the Yunus government, it does not seem that it will give refuge to Sheikh Hasina.
However, it is also true that India will not be able to keep Sheikh Hasina for long. If it does so, relations with Bangladesh will deteriorate. Bangladesh has not yet issued any official statement regarding Sheikh Hasina’s return. But the Bangladesh government is busy preparing for it with full vigor. If the interim government’s foreign minister Mohammad Tauhid Hussain is to be believed, if the court tells him that Sheikh Hasina should be brought back to Bangladesh by any means, then he will definitely try for it and take her back. Bangladesh also has an agreement with the Indian government in this regard.
Bangladesh has cancelled the diplomatic passports of Hasina and her relatives. After the coup in Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina came to Delhi on 6 August. Since then she is staying in Delhi. Earlier it was being said that she would take refuge in some other country, but now it does not seem that she is preparing to go anywhere else. Now it remains to be seen what will be India’s next step regarding Sheikh Hasina. Let us tell you that Mohammad Yunus has taken power in Bangladesh when the protesters forced the long-time Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to flee the country. These arrests in the United Arab Emirates underline the strict laws in this Gulf Arab country that consider speech and public protest as a crime. According to the UAE media, no figures were given about the number of Bangladeshis who received amnesty, but said that it includes those who participated in protests and riots in several Emirates in July.