Ousted Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina gets 21-year jail term in corruption cases

DHAKA (Dunya News) - Bangladesh’s ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina has been handed a 21-year prison sentence after a Dhaka court convicted her in three separate corruption cases linked to land allocations in the government’s Purbachal New Town project.

All three verdicts were announced in her absence, as the former premier is currently living in self-imposed exile in India.

Earlier this month, Hasina was also sentenced to death in a separate case related to alleged crimes against humanity stemming from the government’s crackdown on public uprisings that followed the end of her 15-year rule last year.

In the latest corruption rulings, the court found that Hasina unlawfully secured land plots for herself and her family members despite being ineligible.

She received a seven-year sentence in each of the three cases, with Dhaka Special Court Judge Mohammad Abdullah Al Mamun ordering that the sentences be served consecutively.

Both Hasina’s son and daughter were also sentenced to five years in prison in one of the cases.

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Sheikh Hasina and her former ruling party, the Awami League, have strongly condemned the verdicts.

The former prime minister did not appoint a defence lawyer for the proceedings.

The cases were filed by Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission after Hasina was ousted from power.

Several additional cases related to the same land project remain pending, with another verdict expected on December 1.

Bangladesh is currently undergoing a political transition under an interim government led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, with national elections expected in February.