Can Sheikh Hasina be extradited to Bangladesh? What are India’s options?

Can Sheikh Hasina be extradited to Bangladesh? What are India’s options?

Subject: IR

Sec: Places in news

Context:

India and Bangladesh have an extradition treaty, under whose provisions Bangladesh may seek the extradition of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. But this does not necessarily mean that she will be extradited to her home country, where she faces a number of criminal cases.

Do India and Bangladesh have an extradition treaty?

Yes. India and Bangladesh signed an extradition treaty in 2013, which was then amended in 2016 to ease and hasten the exchange of fugitives between the two countries.

What does the treaty say?

• According to the treaty, India and Bangladesh are supposed to extradite individuals “who have been proceeded against… or have been charged with or have been found guilty of, or are wanted for… committing an extraditable offence” by a court of the requesting country.
• The treaty says, is one which carries a minimum punishment of one year imprisonment. This includes financial offences.
• Crucially, for an offence to be extraditable, the principle of dual criminality must apply, meaning that the offence must be punishable in both countries.
• Extradition shall also be granted if there is an “attempt to commit or aiding, abetting, inciting or participating as an accomplice in the commission of an extraditable offence”.

Are there exceptions to these rules?

• The treaty says that extradition may be refused if the offence is of “political nature”. But this is limited by the nature of offence.
• And the list of offences which cannot be deemed as “political” is rather long. These include murder; manslaughter or culpable homicide; assault; causing of an explosion; the making or possession of an explosive substance or weapons by a person intending to endanger life; the use of a firearm with intent to resist or prevent arrest; damaging property with intent to endanger life; kidnapping or taking of a hostage; incitement to murder; and any other offence related to terrorism.
• Article 8 lists out multiple grounds for refusal including cases in which an accusation has not been “made in good faith in the interests of justice” or in case of military offences which are not “an offence under the general criminal law”.