A court in Bangladesh has sentenced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, her sister Sheikh Rehana, and her niece, British MP Tulip Siddiq, to prison on corruption charges, The Daily Star reports.
Sheikh Hasina received a five-year sentence, her sister was given seven years, and her niece two years. The case concerns irregularities in land allocation under the Purbachal New Town Project. The prosecution alleges the land was acquired illegally by the defendants.
Last week, Sheikh Hasina was already sentenced to seven years in prison on each of three charges related to land allocations for the ex-prime minister, amounting to a total of 21 years.
In mid-November, a verdict was also announced by the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh, which sentenced the former prime minister in absentia to death for crimes against humanity and genocide.
Sheikh Hasina has been in India since August 2024, having flown there following mass unrest in Bangladesh. In 2024, Bangladeshi authorities revoked her diplomatic passport. Dhaka insists that her extradition should be carried out under a 2013 treaty with India on the mutual extradition of criminals.
In July 2024, Bangladesh was swept by anti-government protests, with students playing an active role, dissatisfied with high unemployment and lack of economic prospects. Approximately 1,400 people were killed in the resulting riots and clashes between protesters and police. Sheikh Hasina stated in media interviews that she did not issue orders to kill protesters and claimed that these instructions came from Muhammad Yunus, who headed the interim government after her flight from the country.
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Based on materials from TASS