Bangladesh\u2019s ousted and self-exiled Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was sentenced to six months in prison by the country\u2019s International Crimes Tribunal on Wednesday in a contempt of court case, a top prosecutor said. <\/p>\n
Hasina has been facing multiple cases since she fled to India after deadly student-led protests in August, but it was the first time the former leader was sentenced in one of them. <\/p>\n
Shakil Akand Bulbul, a leader of the Awami League party\u2019s banned student wing Chhatra League, was also sentenced to two months in prison in the same case, Chief Prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam told reporters. The party had been led by Hasina for years. <\/p>\n
A three-member ICT tribunal, led by Justice Golam Mortuza Mozumder, delivered the verdict in their absence, noting that the sentences will take effect upon arrest or surrender, the prosecutor added. <\/p>\n
The contempt charges stem from a leaked phone recording where Hasina was allegedly heard saying, \u201cthere are 227 cases against me, so I now have a licence to kill 227 people.\u201d <\/p>\n
A forensic report by a government investigative agency later confirmed the audio\u2019s authenticity. <\/p>\n
The ICT was originally set up in 2010 by Hasina\u2019s own government to try 1971 war crimes. <\/p>\n
Bangladesh\u2019s interim administration, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, pledged to hold leaders, including Hasina, accountable for rights abuses and corruption, including the crackdown on the student-led uprising last July that toppled Hasina\u2019s regime. <\/p>\n
The tribunal has so far issued three arrest warrants for Hasina, including charges of crimes against humanity linked to the July violence. Hasina\u2019s Awami League party remains banned while trials continue against the party and its former leaders. <\/p>\n
Supporters of Hasina dismiss the charges as politically motivated, but the interim government insists the trials are crucial for restoring accountability and rebuilding trust in Bangladesh\u2019s democratic institutions. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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