Web desk: A Bangladesh court on Thursday sentenced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to 21 years in prison on corruption charges.
The judgment came after Hasina was handed a death sentence for crimes against humanity. That verdict linked her to a deadly crackdown on student-led protests in July and August 2024. She was tried in absentia and has rejected all charges.
Hasina, 78, has stayed in India since leaving Bangladesh after her ouster. She has not returned to face the courts despite repeated instructions to do so.
Sheikh Hasina Wajid
Bangladesh has formally asked India to return the former prime minister. In a letter sent through its foreign ministry, Dhaka referred to the extradition treaty between the two countries and said it was India’s responsibility to hand her over.
The ministry said providing refuge to a convicted person would be an unfriendly act and a denial of justice.
Previously, the International Crimes Tribunal in Dhaka announced the death sentence in the protest-related case. The court said Hasina ordered security forces to use deadly force to suppress the demonstrations. Which a UN report said killed around 1,400 people and injured thousands more, making it the worst violence in Bangladesh since 1971.
Hasina was not present during the hearings and was represented by a state-appointed lawyer who called the charges baseless.
Hasina has described the trial as politically motivated and said the outcome was predetermined.
Her party, the Awami League, has been barred from contesting national elections since her removal. Her son and adviser, Sajeeb Wazed, told Reuters they would only appeal if a future democratically elected government includes the Awami League.
