ANKARA

Bangladesh’s interim government chief Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi ignored Dhaka’s request to stop former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from delivering political speeches online from India.

Speaking at Chatham House in London, Yunus said efforts would continue to seek Hasina’s extradition so she can face charges in Bangladesh related to last year’s crackdown on protests.

Hasina fled to India in August 2024 after a student-led uprising toppled her government. Attempts to quell the movement left as many as 1,400 people dead, according to the United Nations.

Yunus said Modi did not respond “positively” to the request and quoted the Indian leader as saying, “It is the social media, we cannot control it.”

"When I had a chance to talk to Prime Minister Modi, I simply said ‘you want to host her – I cannot force you to abandon that policy. But please help us in making sure she doesn’t speak to Bangladeshi people the way she is doing,’” the Hindustan Times quoted Yunus as saying.

He added that Hasina’s speeches on social media platforms are highly provocative.

"She announces on such and such day and at such and such hour she will speak, and the whole of Bangladesh gets very angry," he went on to say.

"This is an explosive situation, you can’t just walk away by saying this is social media. This is what is still going on," added Yunus.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who took office as head of the transitional government on Aug. 8, said he hopes to build strong ties with India but claimed “fake news” remains a barrier.

There was no immediate response from New Delhi to Yunus' remarks, according to the Hindustan Times.

In Bangladesh, Hasina now faces multiple charges, including crimes against humanity.

Earlier this month, at the opening of her trial, Bangladesh’s chief prosecutor accused her of orchestrating a “systematic attack” on protestors and said she has been charged with “abetment, incitement, complicity, facilitation, conspiracy and failure to prevent mass murder.”