DST News: Ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been handed a 21-year prison sentence after a Dhaka court found her guilty in three separate cases involving the misuse of authority to secure residential plots from the Capital Development Authority (RAJUK) in Purbachal.

Her two children, Saima Wazed Putul and Sajeeb Wazed Joy, were each given five years’ imprisonment, along with a financial penalty of Tk 1 lakh.

In the detailed judgment, the court noted that the plots were allotted to Hasina and her family without any formal application, and that the allocation was issued beyond the legal authority of the officials involved. The court said the entire process bypassed due procedure and was executed solely through the influence of the then–prime minister.

The verdict was delivered by Mohammad Abdullah Al Mamun, judge of Dhaka’s Fifth Special Court, on Thursday.

The announcement of the high-profile verdict prompted strict security measures around the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court. From early morning, police and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel were deployed in significant numbers to maintain order.

Source: BBC Bangla