British Labour MP Tulip Siddiq has been sentenced in absentia by a Bangladeshi court to four additional years in prison after being convicted in two corruption cases for allegedly using her influence to secure state land for her siblings. The court said she helped obtain two 7,200 sq ft plots in the Purbachal New Town project, in breach of allotment rules. Her siblings received seven-year terms, and former prime minister Sheikh Hasina was also convicted in this prosecution. The UK lacks an extradition treaty with Bangladesh, and Ms Siddiq contests the fairness of the proceedings.
Tulip Siddiq Sentenced In Absentia To Four More Years In Bangladesh Over Land Allocations
Tulip Siddiq was found guilty in two further corruption cases in Bangladesh - Jeremy Selwyn
Tulip Siddiq, the Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate, has been sentenced in absentia by a Bangladeshi court to four additional years in prison after being found guilty in two further corruption cases related to the allocation of state land.
The court said Ms Siddiq used her influence on her aunt, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, to secure two 7,200-square-foot plots in the Purbachal New Town development for her sister, Azmina Siddiq, and her brother, Radwan Mujib Siddiq (known as Bobby). She received two separate two-year sentences — one for each plot — which the court handed down in her absence.
Details Of The Case
Prosecutors said the allocations breached Bangladesh’s Allotment of Land Rules, which bar applicants to the Purbachal project from owning residential property or land in Dhaka. The court found that both siblings already owned houses in Dhaka when the Purbachal plots were allocated.
The prosecutions form part of a wider inquiry by Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission into the unlawful allocation of state-owned land to Ms Hasina, members of her family and close associates. Last year, a separate Bangladeshi court convicted Ms Siddiq in absentia for allegedly securing a plot for her mother, Sheikh Rehana.
Tulip Siddiq with her mother Sheikh Rehana at the general election count in Somers Town, north west London, in 2017
Judge Muhammad Rabiul Alam, of the special judge’s court, said the prosecution had established "beyond doubt" that Ms Siddiq, acting as a British MP, used her influence on Ms Hasina to obtain the allocations. The two new two-year terms bring Ms Siddiq’s cumulative sentence across related cases to six years in absentia.
Other Sentences And Legal Context
Ms Siddiq’s sister and brother were each sentenced to seven years in prison for unlawfully securing land in the Purbachal project. The court also convicted Ms Hasina in this prosecution and gave her a five-year sentence in absentia; Ms Hasina earlier received a death sentence in November for crimes against humanity related to the government’s crackdown on protesters.
Observers note it is unlikely Ms Siddiq will serve the sentence in practice: the United Kingdom does not have an extradition treaty with Bangladesh, and she was tried in absentia. Ms Siddiq has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and described the proceedings as unfair.
Labour Party response: "The Labour Party and all our elected representatives take the rule of law incredibly seriously, and will always fulfil our legal responsibilities. Highly regarded senior legal professionals have highlighted that Tulip Siddiq has not had access to a fair legal process in this case and has never been informed of the details of the charges against her. Given that has not happened in this case, we cannot recognise this judgment."
Ms Siddiq resigned from her ministerial role overseeing financial services and anti-corruption in January last year after scrutiny over her links to Ms Hasina. She has been contacted for comment by news organisations.
Note: All sentences mentioned above were handed down in absentia by Bangladeshi courts and relate to multiple cases investigated by Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission.
Help us improve.
