Bangladesh court awards 10-year jail term to former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in land scam case

Dhaka: General elections are scheduled to be held in Bangladesh on February 12.  Ahead of the elections, a Bangladeshi court on Monday sentenced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to 10 years in prison in two separate corruption cases related to alleged irregularities in land allocation in a government housing project.

What has the court said?

 Judge Rabiul Alam of Dhaka Special Judge Court-4 pronounced the verdict, sentencing Hasina to a total of 10 years imprisonment, with 5 years in each case. According to the BSS news agency, the court also sentenced 78-year-old Sheikh Hasina, her nephew Radwan Mujib Siddiq (Radwan Mujib Siddiq Bobby), nieces Tulip Rizwana Siddiq (a British MP), and Azmina Siddiq, and others in cases of alleged irregularities in the allocation of plots under the Rajuk New Town Project in Purbachal. Tulip Siddiq was sentenced to a total of 4 years imprisonment (2 years in each case), while Radwan Mujib Siddiq and Azmina Siddiq were sentenced to 7 years imprisonment in both cases.

Who else has been punished?

Meanwhile, Mohammad Khurshid Alam, the only accused who surrendered before the court, was sentenced to one year imprisonment in each case, totaling two years. The court also imposed a fine of 100,000 Taka (Bangladeshi currency) on all the convicts and ordered them to serve an additional six months in jail if they fail to pay the fine.

It is noteworthy that Sheikh Hasina has been living in India since seeking refuge there after widespread protests in Bangladesh on August 5 last year. She had previously been declared a fugitive by the court. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) had filed these cases alleging abuse of power in the allocation of 20 katha plots. According to the prosecution, the accused manipulated the allocation process and violated the existing rules and regulations of the Capital Development Authority.