Dhaka will demand the extradition of former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from New Delhi, said Muhammad Yunus, the head of the country’s interim government, on Sunday, reported the Dhaka Tribune.

“You are aware of the dire situation under which we had to take charge,” Yunus said in an address to mark 100 days of his government. “Following an unprecedented mass uprising by students, workers and the public, the fascist leader [Hasina] fled, leaving the country temporarily without a government.”

Hasina resigned as the prime minister and fled to India on August 5 amid widespread protests against her Awami League government. Yunus, a Nobel laureate economist, took over as the head of an interim government on August 8.

On Sunday, Yunus said that around 1,500 students, workers and civilians were killed during the violence amid the anti-government protests in Bangladesh in July and August. It had also left 19,931 persons injured, he added.

“During this time [protests], the police and administration became completely inactive, creating an alarming situation,” he said. “We all now have the responsibility of rebuilding a nation devastated by autocratic rule. After the July-August uprising, we inherited a country in total disarray.”

Justice and accountability would be ensured for every killing, Yunus said, adding that the initiatives his administration had taken to investigate the deaths in July and August were progressing well. “Our government is meticulously gathering information on every single death,” he said.

Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal is also investigating Hasina on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity in connection with the anti-government protests in the country.

On October 17, the tribunal issued a warrant for the former prime minister’s arrest. It also issued warrants against 45 others, including Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader.

Over 60 complaints related to enforced disappearances, murders and mass killings had been filed at the tribunal against Hasina, Awami League party leaders and others.

The tribunal ordered Hasina to appear before it by November 18.

Hasina’s Awami League government established the International Crimes Tribunal in 2010 to try persons accused of crimes against humanity for adopting positions against the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971.

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