Former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina has formally asked for a new Bangladeshi passport and national identity card, taking the clearest step yet towards her planned return home in December. The request, made on Monday, is her first formal communication with Bangladeshi authorities since she fled to India in August 2024.
Her lawyers at London-based Matrix Chambers wrote to Preeti Rahman, the acting high commissioner at Bangladesh’s mission in New Delhi, asking that fresh documents be issued. The letter said Hasina’s existing passport and national identity card, known as the NID, had reportedly been revoked by the interim government in Dhaka and other authorities.
According to news agency Reuters, which first reported the letter, the request marks the clearest sign so far that Hasina is acting on her stated plan to return to Bangladesh in December, more than two years after a student-led uprising ended her long rule.
What the letter says
The letter, written by counsel Steven Powles KC of Matrix Chambers, asked the mission to process the applications “expeditiously”, citing Hasina’s Bangladeshi nationality and obligations under international human rights instruments.
“In view of the reported revocation of her existing Bangladeshi passport and National Identity Card (NID) by the Interim Government and other authorities, I respectfully request that you take the necessary steps to issue a new Bangladeshi passport and National Identity Card for our client,” the letter said.
Hasina has told Reuters she plans to return to surrender before a court. Her aides said on Monday that the exact date of her return would be announced once various formalities were completed.
In an interview with the Associated Press earlier this month, Hasina said she would return to Bangladesh in December at any cost. Her aide Abu Obaidha Arin said she was determined to return by December and would “undoubtedly return home”.
Why this matters now
The passport request lands at a sensitive moment for Bangladesh and for India-Bangladesh relations. Hasina has lived in self-imposed exile in New Delhi since 5 August 2024, when weeks of student-led protests forced her from office after 15 years in power.
In November 2025, Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal sentenced her to death in absentia for crimes against humanity, holding her responsible for ordering the crackdown on the 2024 protests. Hasina has denied the charges from exile.
Her Awami League, once the country’s largest political party, remains banned. Dhaka has sought her extradition from India under an extradition treaty, but New Delhi has declined to hand her over. A voluntary return would therefore test both the interim government’s handling of its most prominent opponent and an already strained relationship between the two neighbours.
For now, the letter does one concrete thing: it puts Hasina’s return plan on paper, through official channels, for the first time since she left Dhaka.
What happens next
- The documents: The Bangladesh mission in Delhi will have to decide whether to issue a new passport and NID to a citizen whose existing documents were revoked and who faces a death sentence at home.
- The date: Hasina’s aides say a return date will be announced once formalities are complete. December is the stated window, but no day has been fixed.
- The legal question: Hasina says she will surrender before a court on her return. How Dhaka handles that, and whether the trial process resumes, will be watched closely.
- The politics: With the Awami League banned, her return could reshape Bangladesh’s political landscape ahead of any future election process.
- India’s role: New Delhi has so far refused extradition. Whether it facilitates or simply tolerates her departure will signal much about the current state of ties.
FAQs
Why does Sheikh Hasina need a new passport?
Her existing Bangladeshi passport and national identity card were reportedly revoked by the interim government after she fled in August 2024. Without valid documents, she cannot formally travel back or establish her identity on return.
When does she plan to return?
In December 2026, according to her own statements to Reuters and the Associated Press. The exact date has not been announced and, her aides say, will be shared once formalities are complete.
What legal cases does she face in Bangladesh?
In November 2025, the International Crimes Tribunal sentenced her to death in absentia for crimes against humanity over the crackdown on the 2024 student uprising. She has denied the charges and says she will surrender before a court.
Why is her party, the Awami League, banned?
The party was banned following her fall from power in August 2024. It was the country’s largest party before the uprising that ended her 15-year rule.
Has India agreed to send her back?
No. Dhaka has sought her extradition under a bilateral treaty, but India has declined to hand her over. Her planned return would be voluntary, not an extradition.
Hasina’s letter turns a long-stated intention into a formal request. Whether Dhaka issues the documents, and what happens the day she lands, will now be the questions to watch through December.
