Controversial Verdict: Siddiq and Hasina's Bangladesh Land Case

British lawmaker Tulip Siddiq and former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina are sentenced in absentia in a Bangladesh court over a disputed land allocation. Siddiq received a two-year sentence while Hasina and her sister Rehana receive five and seven years respectively, amid claims of unjust legal proceedings.

A Bangladesh court has sentenced British lawmaker and former minister Tulip Siddiq to two years in absentia in a corruption case. The case involved alleged illegal land allocation and also implicated Siddiq's aunt, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, sentenced to five years, and her sister Rehana, to seven years, according to prosecution sources.

Siddiq resigned from her British ministerial post in January amid scrutiny over her financial ties to Hasina. She criticized the trial as flawed, labeling it a 'kangaroo court'. Bangladesh has no extradition treaty with Britain, complicating the legal repercussions for Siddiq.

The case centers on a land plot in Dhaka, supposed to be for a new township to alleviate local housing and population issues. Prosecutors allege the defendants abused their political influence for the acquisition. Awami League calls the trial politically driven by an interim government led by Muhammad Yunus.

(With inputs from agencies.)