Bangladesh sentences British MP, Sheikh Hasina’s niece to prison

The erstwhile person and her niece, UK lawmaker Tulip Siddiq, were sentenced successful absentia for corruption successful a onshore deal.

A tribunal successful Dhaka has sentenced erstwhile Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina successful absentia to 5 years successful situation and her niece, British MP Tulip Siddiq to two, for corruption successful a lawsuit involving the acquisition of plots of land.

Rabiul Alam, the justice of Dhaka’s Special Judge’s Court, said connected Monday that Hasina – who has lived successful exile successful India since being toppled successful an uprising past twelvemonth – misused her powerfulness arsenic premier successful the transaction.

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Siddiq, an MP for the United Kingdom’s governing Labour party, was recovered blameworthy of corruptly influencing Hasina to assistance her parent – Sheikh Rehana, Hasina’s sister – and 2 siblings get the crippled successful a authorities task successful Dhaka.

Rehana, who is reportedly nary longer based successful Bangladesh, was sentenced to 7 years successful situation successful absentia, with the trio besides fined 100,000 taka ($820) each, which would effect successful an further six months successful situation if they failed to pay, the tribunal said.

Fourteen others charged successful the lawsuit were handed five-year sentences.

Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina [File: Handout/Bangladesh Prime Minister’s Office via AFP]

Khan Mainul Hasan, authoritative for the Anti-Corruption Commission, said his squad had details of Siddiq’s correspondence with Salahuddin Ahmed, Hasina’s main secretary, exposing her relation successful the case, the AFP quality bureau reported.

“Tulip insisted that her aunt Sheikh Hasina allocate plots for her parent and siblings, arsenic she herself took 3 – 1 for her and 2 for her children,” Hasan said. “She called [Ahmed], communicated via immoderate encrypted apps, and adjacent met him portion she was successful Dhaka.”

Charges ‘politically motivated’

Hasina and Siddiq – who did not name lawyers to support the charges – person dismissed them arsenic politically motivated.

Hasina, who was sentenced to death successful absentia past period for crimes against humanity involving the crackdown connected protesters past year, rejected the verdict successful a connection mailed to AFP.

“No state is escaped from corruption. But corruption needs to beryllium investigated successful a mode that is not itself corrupt. The ACC has failed that trial today,” she said.

Her Awami League enactment said successful a connection sent to The Associated Press quality bureau that the verdict was “entirely predictable”, and that Bangladesh’s anticorruption watchdog was “a governmental mechanics utilized for governmental ends”.

Siddiq, MP for London’s Hampstead and Highgate constituency, has not yet commented publicly, but has antecedently dismissed the allegations arsenic a “politically motivated smear”.

Her ties to her aunt led her to resign successful January arsenic the UK’s curate liable for fiscal services and anticorruption efforts, saying the scrutiny implicit the narration was becoming “a distraction from the enactment of the government”.

Her resignation came aft an probe by Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s morals advisor into Siddiq’s links to her aunt’s regime, which recovered she had not breached the ministerial code, but recommended that Starmer reconsider her responsibilities, the PA Media quality bureau reported.

The UK does not person an extradition pact with Bangladesh.

Hasan, the prosecutor, said officials would interaction the UK authorities done Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding Siddiq’s verdict.

The prosecution said Siddiq was tried arsenic a Bangladeshi citizen, AP reported, with authorities saying they had obtained a Bangladeshi passport, nationalist individuality paper and taxation fig for the British MP.

But Siddiq has disputed the assertion and said she is simply a British national and does not clasp Bangladeshi citizenship.

On Thursday, different tribunal sentenced Hasina successful absentia to 21 years successful abstracted cases involving the aforesaid township project, uncovering her blameworthy of illegally securing plots of onshore successful the Dhaka improvement for herself and her family, contempt their ineligibility.

Hasina’s lad and girl were besides sentenced to 5 years successful jailhouse each by the tribunal successful 1 of the cases.