A leaked audio recording, verified by the BBC, linked former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to the deadly crackdown on student-led protests last year.
In the recording, Hasina is reportedly heard instructing a senior official to deploy lethal force against demonstrators, saying security personnel should “shoot wherever they find them (protesters)."
The directive was allegedly given on July 18, 2024, while Hasina was at her official residence, Ganabhaban, in Dhaka.
Hours later, law enforcement officers used military-grade weapons in operations across the capital, according to documents reviewed by the BBC.
The United Nations estimates that over 1,400 people were killed during the suppression of protests, which erupted in response to a contentious quota policy for public sector jobs.
The violence continued through July and August 2024.
The events led to the collapse of Hasina’s Awami League government. She left the country on August 5, 2024, and has remained in India since then.
The Bangladeshi government has submitted a formal extradition request.
Hasina now faces charges in a special tribunal in Bangladesh, where prosecutors intend to present the audio as primary evidence in the case. She is accused of ordering mass violence during the unrest.
In her first public remarks since fleeing, Hasina denied authorising any use of force that resulted in deaths. Nevertheless, the leaked audio is seen by investigators as significant in establishing her direct involvement in the crackdown.
A spokesperson for the Awami League dismissed the allegations, arguing that the audio does not reflect any illegal orders or disproportionate action, the BBC reported.
Toby Cadman, a UK-based human rights lawyer advising Bangladesh’s International Criminal Tribunal, said the audio will play a key role in the proceedings. “The recordings are critical for establishing her role, they are clear and have been properly authenticated, and are supported by other evidence," he told the BBC.
Source: News18