Sheikh Hasina must stay silent in India till Bangladesh seeks her extradition: Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus

Bangladesh's interim leader urges India to keep former PM silent to avoid discomfort and extradition requests.

Muhammad Yunus, the head of Bangladesh's interim government, has said that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina making political remarks from India is an “unfriendly gesture", asserting that she must remain silent to prevent the discomfort to both countries until Dhaka requests her extradition.

"If India wants to keep her until the time Bangladesh (government) wants her back, the condition would be that she has to keep quiet," he said.

In an interview with PTI at his official residence in Dhaka, Mr. Yunus, who was appointed the country's Chief Advisor after Hasina's ouster, stressed that while Bangladesh values strong ties with India, New Delhi must move “beyond the narrative that portrays every other political party except Awami League as Islamist and that the country will turn into Afghanistan without Sheikh Hasina.”

"No one is comfortable with her stance there in India because we want her back to try her. She is there in India and at times she is talking, which is problematic. Had she been quiet, we would have forgotten it; people would have also forgotten it as she would have been in her own world. But sitting in India, she is speaking and giving instructions. No one likes it,” he said.

Mr. Yunus was referring to Hasina's statement on August 13 in which she demanded "justice", saying those involved in recent "terror acts", killings and vandalism must be investigated, identified, and punished.

“It is not good for us or for India. There is discomfort regarding it,” he said.

Following unprecedented anti-government protests that peaked on August 5, Hasina resigned as Prime Minister and fled to India. Her presence in India for nearly four weeks has fuelled speculation in Bangladesh.