HRW urges Bangladesh to end prolonged detention of Awami League-linked prisoners

Human Rights Watch has called on Bangladesh to end the prolonged pretrial detention of politicians and others linked to the deposed Awami League government, saying hundreds remain imprisoned without being charged and raising concerns over deaths and access to medical care in custody.

Police detained thousands of Awami League officials, activists and supporters after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted in August 2024 following weeks of mass protests.

While some former officials and security personnel face allegations of serious rights violations, including extrajudicial killings, torture and enforced disappearances, HRW said many others were arrested over the deaths of protesters without apparent evidence linking them to the alleged crimes.

“At least 10 Awami League office holders, most of whom were not charged with any crime, have died in prison since Prime Minister Tarique Rahman took office in February 2026,” the New York-based rights group said Monday.

“Under one government after another, hundreds of opposition members have been locked up without evidence or due process,” said Elaine Pearson, HRW’s Asia director.

“The government of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has pledged reform, and as a first step he should end the prolonged arbitrary detention of political opponents.”

HRW said families and lawyers of detainees, including a number of elderly prisoners with serious health conditions, alleged they had been denied bail and adequate medical treatment.

The rights group also criticised the government’s proposed National Human Rights Commission bill, saying that, if adopted in its current form, it would prevent the commission from investigating alleged arbitrary arrests.

HRW alleges pattern of fresh cases after bail

HRW said prosecutors had repeatedly opposed bail in cases where no evidence had been produced, while lower courts had consistently rejected bail applications.

It also alleged authorities had circumvented High Court bail orders by filing fresh cases against detainees before they could be released.

HRW cited the case of former Chief Justice ABM Khairul Haque, 82, who was arrested on July 24, 2025, over the alleged murder of a protester. Four more cases, including a corruption case, were subsequently brought against him.

His family told HRW that Haque suffered a heart attack in prison.

Although the High Court granted him bail in the cases, police repeatedly sought his arrest in new cases before his release, HRW said. One murder allegation placed him at a crime scene at the same time as another alleged murder involving him more than 10 kilometres away.

Haque was eventually released on August 19 after the Appellate Division intervened, having spent more than a year in detention without being formally charged with an offence, according to HRW.

Lawyers for other detainees told the rights group that they sometimes advise clients against seeking bail because police may simply bring another case if bail is granted.

More than 160 held by International Crimes Tribunal

HRW also raised concerns about detention under Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal, which is handling cases involving alleged international crimes.

According to the rights group, more than 160 people detained by the tribunal have not been released on bail. The law allows detention without charge beyond one year only in “exceptional circumstances” set out in writing, while detainees have no right to appeal against bail rejection, HRW said.

Former energy adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, 81, has spent 22 months in custody without charge since being detained by the tribunal in October 2024, according to HRW.

When he sought bail in April, the tribunal neither granted bail nor set out the “exceptional circumstances” for continuing his detention, instead adjourning proceedings twice, most recently until the end of August, the group said.

Former lawmaker Kamal Ahmed Majumder, 75, has also been detained for 22 months. His family told HRW that he developed gangrene in prison, requiring the amputation of three toes, and later broke his hip in a fall. His bail application was rejected in July.

HRW also highlighted the cases of author and activist Shahriar Kabir, 75, who has chronic health conditions and requires a wheelchair, and former minister RAM Obaidul Muktadir Chowdhury, 71, who it said has serious heart problems and has spent 22 months in detention without charge.

Calls for inquiries into prison deaths

The rights group cited the death of former Awami League lawmaker Ramesh Chandra Sen, 85, who had been detained since August 2024 in connection with three murder cases and an explosives case.

Sen died in custody on February 7, 2026. His family alleged that he had been denied proper medication and bail.

HRW also raised concerns over the death of Jamalpur Awami League member SM Ziaul Haque Zia, 65, who was detained on January 6 despite being in poor health and died on April 14 after being denied bail.

Under international human rights law, HRW said, pretrial detention should be an exception rather than the rule and should be assessed individually. Detainees are entitled to judicial review of the legality and necessity of their detention and to a speedy trial or release.

“A justice system that lets older people die in custody before they are ever charged is not treating pretrial detention as the exceptional measure it always should be,” Pearson said.

“The Bangladeshi government should order independent inquiries into all prison deaths under its watch and stop arbitrarily detaining people for prolonged periods without charge.”

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