New Delhi on Monday said it has formally taken note of the Dhaka-based International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh’s verdict against ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, adding that it “remains committed to the best interests of the people of Bangladesh.”

“As a close neighbour, India remains committed to the best interests of the people of Bangladesh, including peace, democracy, inclusion and stability in that country. We will always engage constructively with all stakeholders to that end,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

BNP Chairperson and former Bangladesh PM Khaleda Zia, watched the ICT’s verdict on television. He expressed “relief” and urged that the court’s decision be fully enforced, saying the souls of those who died in the July protests would now find peace. According to a senior BNP leader, she believes “the martyrs of the July Revolution have received justice … Justice has been established in the court’s verdict,” Zia’s personal assistant, ABM Abdus Sattar, told Bangladeshi daily, Desh Rupantor.

Social media users in Bangladesh are abuzz with speculation after the International Crimes Tribunal rescheduled its verdict from November 14 to November 17. The latter is Sheikh Hasina’s wedding anniversary. Hasina was married to nuclear scientist MA Wazed Miah on November 17, 1967. The change of date on social media has fuelled claims that the date for the verdict was deliberately chosen to add a symbolic sting to the ousted PM’s death sentence.