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admin 5 Aug 2026 , 6:45 PM Print Edition
Online Desk : Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday expressed strong outrage over a live media interaction by ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina in New Delhi, describing the event as an affront to Bangladesh’s sovereignty and harmful to bilateral relations with India.
In a statement, the ministry said it was “outraged” that Sheikh Hasina, whom it referred to as an absconding convicted criminal, was allowed to address the media from Indian soil, where she allegedly made remarks against the State of Bangladesh and its people.
The ministry said Dhaka had previously conveyed its concerns to the Government of India about the possible impact of such an event on ongoing efforts to reset bilateral ties, but regretted that the programme was allowed to proceed despite those concerns.
The statement noted that the event took place on the second anniversary of the July Revolution, saying it was viewed as an insult to those who lost their lives during the movement and as an affront to Bangladesh’s sovereignty.
The foreign ministry also rejected Sheikh Hasina’s remarks, accusing her of denying findings established by the United Nations regarding the July-August 2024 violence. It alleged that attempts to challenge those findings would not alter what it described as the course of history and said the people of Bangladesh had repeatedly rejected such efforts.
Reaffirming the spirit of the July Revolution, the ministry said the people of Bangladesh remained committed to preventing any return to authoritarian rule and to safeguarding the country’s independence and national dignity.
At the same time, the statement reiterated Bangladesh’s desire to maintain a constructive, mutually beneficial and forward-looking relationship with India based on sovereign equality, mutual respect, non-interference in each other’s internal affairs and national dignity.
The ministry further said Bangladesh had repeatedly requested India to return Sheikh Hasina under the extradition treaty signed between the two countries in 2013, but had yet to receive a response. It added that permitting her to engage publicly with the media had deeply hurt public sentiment in Bangladesh and could negatively affect the development of harmonious bilateral relations between the two neighbours.
