Sheikh Hasina gets 21 years in jail after death sentence
What's the story
A Bangladesh court has sentenced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to 21 years in prison in three corruption cases linked to allocations of land. The sentence comes just a week after she was handed a death sentence over her role in the 2024 student-led uprising. The corruption charges are related to irregularities in plot allocations under the Rajuk New Town Project in Purbachol. Hasina was sentenced to seven years for each of the three cases, with sentences to run consecutively.
Sentence details
Hasina's sentence includes 3 corruption cases
The court said, "The plot was allotted to Sheikh Hasina without any application and in a manner that exceeded the legally authorized jurisdiction." Hasina's conduct "demonstrates a persistent corruption mindset rooted in entitlement, unchecked power, and a greedy eye for public property," ruled Judge Abdullah Al Mamun. "Treating public land as a private asset, she directed her greedy eye toward state resources and manipulated official procedures to benefit herself and her close relatives."
Rejection of proceedings
Hasina's response to recent verdict
Her son Sajeeb Wazed and daughter Saima Wazed were both sentenced to five years in prison in one of the three cases. Following Hasina's ouster, the Anti-Corruption Commission had filed three cases against her, her son, her daughter, and others. Other cases also involve the land project, and another ruling is scheduled on December 1 in a different case. In response to her latest conviction, Hasina has rejected the legitimacy of the proceedings, calling the court a "rigged tribunal."
Previous conviction
Hasina's death sentence linked to student-led uprising
On November 17, the International Crimes Tribunal sentenced Hasina to death for her role in a violent crackdown on a student-led uprising from July to August last year. A United Nations report estimated around 1,400 deaths and thousands of injuries during this unrest, making it the deadliest political violence in Bangladesh since its independence war in 1971.