# Sajeeb Wazed alleges ISI influence and militant releases in Bangladesh 2026-08-05T23:12:21+00:00 | India | Indian Opinion Desk At an India press conference, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, the son of Bangladesh's former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, accused Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence of operating with what he called an open hand inside Bangladesh, and charged that the country's present rulers had freed hundreds of militants who had been jailed and convicted while the Awami League was in power. He went further, saying Hizb ut-Tahrir now holds open marches and that Al-Qaeda operatives speak at public rallies, and cautioned that Bangladesh risks turning into a launchpad for terrorism reaching India and beyond. Hasina, present at the same event, announced plans to go back to Bangladesh in December, roughly two years on from her August 2024 departure amid a student-led uprising, saying she accepts she might be jailed or killed but is returning anyway to concentrate on the nation's security and development. Joy said India was giving her full security as a head of state and thanked the Indian government for hosting her over the past two years. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Joy's assertions, that hundreds of convicted militants have been released and that Pakistan's ISI has an open hand in Bangladesh, are his own, and Hindustan Times reports no answer to them from Bangladesh's government and no supporting data. Hasina, at the same press conference, called the July-August 2024 agitation neither peaceful nor spontaneous and described it as a coordinated campaign aimed at regime change, which is her account of her own removal. Both are speaking for the ousted Awami League leadership, so the claims stand as allegations. Hasina said she would return in December without naming a date, and that return is the next test of the plan she set out. ## Coverage - www.hindustantimes.com Tags: Sajeeb Wazed, Sheikh Hasina Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/pakistans-isi-has-a-free-hand-in-bangladesh-sheikh-hasinas-son-calls-it-a-problem-for-india/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/pakistans-isi-has-a-free-hand-in-bangladesh-sheikh-hasinas-son-calls-it-a-problem-for-india/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.