Sheikh Hasina seeks passport as planned Bangladesh return takes shape

Bangladesh's ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina has requested a new passport and national identity card as she prepares for a possible return from exile in India. The request is the clearest sign yet that she intends to travel back to Bangladesh in December, as she has previously said. Her aides said the exact date would be announced once formalities are completed.

Hasina told Reuters that she intends to surrender before a court in Bangladesh. In a letter to the government, she asked for her request to be processed expeditiously on the basis of her Bangladeshi nationality. She has been living in India for two years, and the move comes after a long period of political uncertainty following her removal from office.

The legal backdrop is severe. Bangladesh's war crimes court sentenced Hasina to death in absentia last November over what it said was her role in a deadly crackdown on student protests in 2024. United Nations estimates cited in the reporting put the death toll from those protests at as many as 1,400 people.

Her return would therefore place her directly back into a highly charged judicial and political process. Hasina is one of the most prominent figures in Bangladesh's recent political history. She served as prime minister from 1996 to 2001 and again from 2009 to 2024, making her the country's longest-ruling prime minister.

She is also the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh's founder and first president, which has long given her political standing as well as controversy. Her possible return matters beyond the courtroom. Supporters still remain among sections of the population, and her presence could affect efforts by the current authorities to stabilise the country and its economy after two years of disruption.

The development also has regional implications, because relations with India deteriorated sharply after she fled there in 2024. What remains unclear is whether all formalities will be completed in time for a December return and how the authorities will handle her arrival. It is also not yet known whether the court process will move quickly once she is back in the country.

For now, the request for travel documents is the strongest indication that a return is being actively prepared.

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