Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday asked her country's High Commission in New Delhi for a new passport and national identity card, to help her planned return home from exile in India, Hindustan Times reported.
Hasina, 79, confirmed to HT that her lawyers at Matrix Chambers in London had written to the acting high commissioner, Preeti Rahman, and shared a copy of the letter emailed to the mission.
"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 lawyers wrote.
Dhaka's response
Bangladesh's Home Affairs Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said on Monday afternoon that the authenticity and legal basis of the request were being verified, The Business Standard reported.
Diplomatic sources in Dhaka told Prothom Alo that there was no way to confirm the application was from Hasina, because the law firm's email did not include an authorisation or proof document from her. The Foreign Ministry confirmed that the mission had received the email and passed it on to Dhaka.
There was no immediate comment from India's External Affairs Ministry, HT reported.
Why it matters
The request is the clearest step yet towards the return Hasina has said she will make in December, despite having been sentenced to death. People familiar with the matter told HT that a passport would let her choose how to enter, for instance by a land border crossing rather than an airport. She has said she intends to surrender to a court when she returns.
Background
Hasina has lived in India since her government was ousted in a student-led uprising in August 2024. In 2025, Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal sentenced her to death for crimes against humanity over the crackdown on the protests, in which the UN said nearly 1,400 people were killed. She denies wrongdoing and rejects the verdict.
Dhaka has repeatedly asked India to extradite her; India says the request is being examined in line with legal and judicial processes. Her Awami League is currently banned. A government led by Tarique Rahman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party took office in February.