Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
A bangladesh The court has sentenced Labor MP Tulip Siddiqui He was jailed for two years after being found guilty of corruption in a government land project.
The Dhaka special judge’s court found Ms Siddiq guilty of corruptly influencing her aunt, a former prime minister Sheikh HasinaTo help his mother acquire a piece of land in the suburbs of the Bangladeshi capital.
Ms Siddiq’s mother Sheikh Rehana was sentenced to seven years in prison, while Ms Hasina was sentenced to five years in prison.
All were tried in absentia, and the MP for Hampstead and Highgate, who denied the charges, is unlikely to be convicted because there is no extradition treaty with Britain. bangladesh,
Ms Siddiq is facing multiple cases bangladeshwho inspired him to Keir Starmer resigns as anti-corruption minister In January this year.
Ms Hasina, who fled to India amid massive anti-government protests in August last year, has already been sentenced to death by a tribunal court. bangladesh For crimes against humanityLast week, they were sentenced to a combined 21 years in prison in other corruption cases,
Prosecutors argued that the land in the Purvanchal New Town project was illegally allotted through political influence and collusion with senior officials, accusing the defendants of abusing their authority to secure the approximately 13,610-square-foot plot, during Ms Hasina’s tenure as prime minister.
Court documents claim Ms Siddiq “coerced and influenced her aunt and former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by using her special power.” [a plot of land] To his mother Rehana Siddiqui, sister Azmina Siddiqui and brother Radwan Siddiqui”.
A total of 17 defendants were each fined TK100,000 (£620), or face an additional six months in prison if they fail to pay. Each of the 14 other defendants was sentenced to five years in prison.
Prosecutors said Ms Siddiq was tried as a Bangladeshi citizen after authorities obtained her Bangladeshi passport, ID and tax number – a claim that was disputed. Labor MP.
His lawyers claimed that he never had a registered voter ID card nor did he have any voter ID card [Bangladeshi] Passport since she was a child”.
All the defendants, including Ms Siddiq, declined to appoint any defense counsel to represent them.
Ms Siddiq had previously claimed she was “collateral damage” in a feud between her aunt and Muhammad Yunus Nobel laureate named interim leader bangladesh After the expulsion of Ms. Hasina.
“These are broader forces that I am fighting against… There is no doubt that people have done wrong things in Bangladesh and they should be punished for it. It’s just that I am not one of them,” she said. Guardian.
A Bangladesh court issued an arrest warrant for Ms Siddiq in April. He was convicted in July.
Ms Siddiq resigned from her ministerial job at the Treasury earlier this year following an investigation by the prime minister’s ethics adviser into her ties to Ms Hasina’s regime. She came under investigation for her use of properties belonging to her aunt’s associates in London.
Although Sir Laurie Magnus concluded that Ms Siddiq had not breached the ministerial code, he advised Sir Keir to reconsider his responsibilities. Ms Siddiq decided to resign, saying she had become a “distraction” from the government’s agenda.
Asked about Monday’s sentencing, Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones said: bbc breakfast: “It is a personal matter for Tulip to speak, but my understanding is that there was a trial in Bangladesh which she was not a part of.
“She tried to engage with the Bangladeshi government with questions, but was not allowed to do so, and concluded that this was more of a political situation than a legal one. She continues to deny any allegations made against her.”
He added: “This is a decision taken by a foreign country and a foreign court. I am sure Tulip will work to represent her voters in Parliament.”
Ms Siddiq’s mother and two siblings have been living outside Bangladesh since the protests in August last year. Two of Ms Siddiq’s siblings face other charges related to last year’s rebellion.
In a statement, Ms Hasina rejected the process by which she was found guilty on Monday. He said, “No country is free from corruption. But corruption should be investigated in a way that does not corrupt itself. ACC [Anti-Corruption Commission] Today he has failed in the exam.”
Her Awami League party, which is banned from running in the country’s general election in February, said in a statement: “The allegations against Sheikh Hasina, her sister and many others, including members of her immediate and wider family, are strongly refuted. No concrete evidence of corruption in the ACC was heard, as none exists.”
Ms Hasina said her successor Dr Yunus was “using the ACC as a cover to divert attention from his governance failures”.
“They are also using it to suppress a political party that has been elected nine times since independence, including the last time Bangladeshis were allowed to go to the polls,” he said.