Bangladesh ex-minister alleges ISI role in 2024 upheaval; state minister Kobir calls Sheikh Hasina ‘terrorist’

New Delhi: The former Bangladesh foreign minister and Bangladesh Awami League joint general secretary, Mohammed Hasan Mahmud, has alleged that Pakistan’s intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was involved in the political developments that led to the ouster of the former Bangladeshi prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, government in August 2024. He also alleged that the ISI had links to what he described as atrocities against political opponents.

Mahmud said there were indications of Pakistani intelligence involvement in the events of August 5, 2024. He claimed that the interim government formed after the political upheaval and the present government had moved towards closer ties with Pakistan.

Mahmud also called for a “national reconsideration” of Bangladesh’s political direction and urged an end to what he described as politics of hatred, denial and confrontation, ANI reported. He called on the government to lift the ban on Awami League activities and stop what he termed the repression of its leaders, workers and supporters.

“There must be national reconciliation,” Mahmud said. He also alleged that Bangladesh was facing a severe human rights situation, including restrictions on freedom of expression and repression of religious minorities.

According to Mahmud, minorities in Bangladesh had faced attacks, while temples and churches were allegedly burned or demolished. He further claimed that hundreds of Hindu homes had been destroyed over the past two years.

According to reports, Mahmud alleged that more than 500,000 political opponents, mainly Awami League workers and supporters, had been arrested during the same period. He claimed that more than 120,000 people remained in custody and that over 200 Awami League leaders and workers had died in custody due to alleged mistreatment, lack of medical care and torture.

The issue of Sheikh Hasina and her activities in India has also emerged as a major concern for Bangladesh ahead of Tarique Rahman, Bangladeshi prime minister, proposed visit to India. The Bangladesh state minister for foreign affairs, Humaiun Kobir told the Hindu that the activities of Hasina and her team in India were the “principal challenge” in planning the visit.

On the sidelines of the Bay of Bengal Conversation 2026, organized by the centre for governance studies in Dhaka on October 5, Kobir said India needed to understand the challenges facing Bangladesh’s newly elected government. He also said the activities of Awami League leaders living in exile would not be helpful to India.

Kobir urged India to restrain Hasina and other exiled Awami League leaders, saying there were challenges to the proposed visit but both sides could overcome them through dialogue. “Sheikh Hasina and her team are staying in Delhi and they are trying to destabilise another country from there. This is not helping India either,” he said.

Kobir accused Hasina of being responsible for the deaths of nearly 2,000 Bangladeshi citizens during the suppression of the July-August 2024 uprising. He described her as a “terrorist” and said Bangladesh needed a “clean break” with its past after people sacrificed their lives to remove her government, which had remained in power for more than 15 years.

The state minister said discussions with India were continuing and Dhaka welcomed the dialogue. He described relations with India as a priority and said there were “positive signs” as India was trying to restrain Hasina and her team.

Kobir also highlighted the role of Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh, Dinesh Trivedi, in this regard. He said Rahman’s visit to India would take place at a “conducive time” and added that the Rahman had never said he would not visit India.

Speaking at the same event, Bay of Bengal Conversation 2026 in Dhaka, Trivedi had addressed the issue of Hasina’s arrival in India on Saturday. He said her arrival in August 2024 was unexpected and was not arranged by the Indian Air Force or the Indian Army, adding that India had “hardly any choice” but to allow the Bangladeshi government aircraft carrying her to land.

Trivedi said Hasina was still Bangladesh’s prime minister at the time and India had to accept the situation as a neighbouring country. On Bangladesh’s demand for her return, he said the issue was now part of a legal process and India, as a democracy, would respect the legal system.

The allegations made by Mahmud regarding ISI involvement, political arrests, custodial deaths and attacks on minorities were not independently verified in the information provided.