Govt intensifies efforts to bring back 4 fugitives, including Hasina, Kamal: Salahuddin

Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed today (27 August) said the government is pursuing diplomatic and legal efforts to bring back four fugitives, including ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, former inspector general of police Benazir Ahmed and human trafficking case accused Molla Nazrul Islam.

“Two other accused in murder cases, Md Arif Sarker and Mobarak Mondal, have already been brought back to Bangladesh from the UAE and Qatar this year,” he told Parliament while replying to a question from Jamalpur-5 lawmaker Shah Md Wares Ali Mamun.

The reply was tabled in the Parliament with Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed in the chair.

Hasina and Kamal, who were sentenced to death by the International Crimes Tribunal, are among the fugitives for whom Bangladesh has applied to Interpol for Red Notices and sent extradition proposals to India, the home minister said.

Benazir, who is also the subject of an Interpol Red Notice, was reportedly arrested in the UAE on 12 June. Bangladesh sent a formal extradition proposal to the UAE on 16 June to bring him back. As Bangladesh has no extradition treaty with the UAE, the country sought an assurance of cooperation on a reciprocal basis.

In response, Bangladesh sent the required documents through diplomatic channels on 4 August and hired a law firm through its embassy in Abu Dhabi to assist with the legal process for bringing Benazir back.

Molla Nazrul Islam, a fugitive accused in a human trafficking case and wanted under an Interpol Red Notice, was arrested in Libya. Bangladesh sent a formal extradition proposal through diplomatic channels on 16 March to bring him back, the minister said.

Meanwhile, Arif Sarker, who was accused in a murder case and wanted under an Interpol Red Notice, was repatriated from the UAE on 6 May. Mobarak Mondal, also accused in a murder case and wanted under a Red Notice, was brought back from Qatar on 27 May.

The home minister also said the government has intensified efforts to identify, arrest and repatriate fugitives through Interpol, law enforcement agencies of the countries concerned, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh missions abroad.