Govt scrutinising laws on Hasina’s passport and citizenship rights, says Home Minister

The government is examining the legal provisions governing passport, citizenship and National Identity Card (NID) applications to determine whether ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina is legally entitled to apply for the documents, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said on Monday.

The Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Law are reviewing the relevant laws, including whether Hasina’s reported applications have actually been submitted and whether she is legally eligible to seek the documents, he told journalists at the Secretariat.

“Everything, including the Passport Act, Citizenship Act and NID laws, is being scrutinised,” he said.

He said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of Law would brief the media after completing a detailed review of the relevant legal provisions.

“I have also heard about it and seen reports in Scroll News that fugitive convict Hasina has applied for a passport and an NID. However, I have not yet been able to verify the authenticity of the information,” he said.

On efforts to bring Hasina back to Bangladesh, Salahuddin said the government had sent a formal extradition request through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the existing extradition treaty.

The home minister also alleged that ousted forces were occasionally attacking buses and various establishments in an attempt to create instability in the country.

He made the remarks while responding to journalists’ questions about recent cocktail explosions and bus arson attacks at different locations in the capital.

Salahuddin said police would take strict legal action against those involved and bring them to book. “Whoever is carrying out these activities, they are all miscreants,” he said.