Rehana and Tulip have been sentenced alongside Sheikh Hasina in the Purbachal corruption case

A Dhaka court on Monday handed separate prison terms to ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her sister Sheikh Rehana and Rehana’s daughter, UK MP Tulip Rizwana Siddiq, over corruption involving plot allocations under the RAJUK Purbachal New Town Project.

Hasina was sentenced to five years, Tulip to two years, and Rehana—named the prime accused—to seven years in jail in the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) case against 17 individuals. The remaining accused each received five-year sentences, and all convicts were fined Tk1 lakh.

Hasina, Rehana, Tulip and 13 others were tried in absentia. Only former RAJUK member Mohammad Khurshid Alam was present in the dock when Judge Robiul Alam of Dhaka Special Judge Court-4 delivered the verdict. The court also ordered the cancellation of Rehana’s plot allocation.

Tulip, a Labour MP and former minister, was found guilty of leveraging her political influence and persuading her aunt Hasina to secure land for her family in Purbachal.

Monday’s ruling follows a series of recent convictions against Hasina—21 years in three graft cases last week, and a death sentence handed down by the International Crimes Tribunal for the 2024 atrocities. This is the fourth verdict since she fled Bangladesh on 5 August 2024 following the mass uprising. With the latest judgment, she now faces a total of 26 years in prison in four Purbachal-related corruption cases, in addition to a six-month contempt sentence from the ICT.

The court also noted that it was the same bench that had framed charges against Prof Muhammad Yunus—now chief adviser of the interim government—in a separate ACC case in June 2024. Although a charge sheet was submitted in February that year, the ACC later sought to withdraw the case, and the court approved the request in August.

Court observations

Before announcing the verdict, the judge affirmed the court’s jurisdiction, noting that the accused are Bangladeshi citizens and can be tried regardless of where they are currently residing. He added that the law does not require the appointment of defence lawyers for absconding defendants unless the charges carry the death penalty.

Citing judicial precedent, he reiterated that an accused must surrender before the trial court to claim the right to be heard, and that fugitives cannot seek legal privileges or remedies. Quoting a Quranic verse—“Do not assist one another in sin and wrongdoing”—the judge said Hasina had abused her office to illegally allocate a plot to Rehana. “Corruption has become a disease engulfing society. We must resist and stand against it,” he said.

Reactions

Tulip, who represents Hampstead and Highgate in the UK Parliament, dismissed the allegations, calling the proceedings “flawed and farcical” and driven by “fabricated accusations and political vendetta”.

The ACC, meanwhile, expressed dissatisfaction, noting that it had sought a life sentence for the prime accused. ACC counsel Moinul Hossain Khan Lipon said the commission would decide its next steps. On Tulip’s dual citizenship, he said she remains a Bangladeshi national as her name is on the voter list, she paid taxes from 2006–2017, and she holds a National Identity Card. “We will notify the UK government of her conviction and coordinate with the foreign ministry,” he added.