Bangladesh commission alleges India's 'role in enforced disappearances'

An inquiry commission established by Bangladesh’s interim government has alleged India's involvement in “enforced disappearances” during Sheikh Hasina’s tenure as prime minister, as reported by the state-run news agency BSS.

According to the Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances stated, “Indian involvement in Bangladesh’s system of enforced disappearances is a matter of public record.”

The five-member commission, led by a retired Supreme Court judge, highlighted a “persistent suggestion in law enforcement circles” that some Bangladeshi detainees might still be held in Indian prisons. The commission recommended that the Ministries of Foreign and Home Affairs investigate the whereabouts of any Bangladeshi citizens potentially incarcerated in India. However, it noted that its jurisdiction does not extend beyond Bangladesh. Intelligence reports reviewed by the commission also hinted at prisoner exchanges between the two nations and the uncertain fate of the detainees.

The report cited two prominent cases illustrating enforced disappearances. One involved Shukhranjan Bali, who was abducted from the premises of the Bangladesh Supreme Court and later discovered in an Indian jail. The other case concerned BNP leader Salahuddin Ahmed, whose account shed light on a rendition system between Bangladesh and India. Ahmed, detained in 2015, described harsh conditions in captivity, recalling a blanket marked “TFI” (Task Force for Interrogation), suggesting connections to Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). The commission visited the suspected TFI centre, now under RAB control, and found it extensively damaged.

Last week, the commission submitted an interim report titled Unfolding The Truth to Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, estimating that over 3,500 enforced disappearances had occurred. The commission consists of Justice Farid Ahmed Shibli, rights activist Nur Khan, BRAC University academic Nabila Idris, and activist Sajjad Hossain, alongside its chairman.

The report also implicated Sheikh Hasina’s former defense adviser, retired Major General Tarique Ahmed Siddique, a dismissed major general, two senior police officers, and other officials in these disappearances. It highlighted RAB’s role in collaborating across military and police units to abduct, torture, and detain victims. The commission proposed abolishing RAB and called for amendments or the repeal of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 2009.

According to member Sajjad Hossain, 1,676 complaints of enforced disappearances have been recorded, with 758 cases reviewed. Of these, 27% of victims have not returned, and those who did were often falsely documented as arrested. The commission also identified eight secret detention centres in Dhaka and its surroundings. It plans to submit another interim report in March, with a full review of all allegations expected to take at least another year.