India’s handling of the request for Sheikh Hasina’s extradition is becoming a test not merely of its relations with Bangladesh, but of whether New Delhi can keep law and diplomacy from becoming indistinguishable. Bangladesh has a legitimate interest in seeking the return of a former prime minister convicted of grave offences. India, equally, cannot treat an extradition request as a routine diplomatic transaction. Hasina was convicted and sentenced to death in absentia by Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal.

That fact makes the case considerably more complicated than a straightforward request to surrender a fugitive. The 2013 India-Bangladesh extradition treaty creates obligations between the two countries, but it does not eliminate the discretion and safeguards available to the requested state. The central question is therefore not whether India is friendly towards Hasina or whether Bangladesh is entitled to seek her return. It is whether the circumstances of the prosecution satisfy the standards India should require before surrendering a person to face punishment.

The political-offence exception deserves particular scrutiny. Crimes such as murder and genocide cannot be........

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