Labour MP Tulip Siddiq has been sentenced to two years in prison by a Dhaka court for her role in a corruption case, but won’t serve time due to lack of UK-Bangladesh extradition treaty
Labour MP Tulip Siddiq has been handed a two-year jail term by a Dhaka court for her involvement in a corruption scandal tied to a government land scheme. The court ruled that the Labour MP had wrongfully swayed her aunt, deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, to obtain a plot of land for her mother, Sheikh Rehana, who was slapped with a seven-year sentence as the principal defendant in the case.
The proceedings focused on the Purbachal New Town project, a government development situated in a Dhaka suburb. Siddiq, who serves Hampstead and Highgate in the UK Parliament, has rejected all charges.
Hasina, meanwhile, was handed five years in her absence, having fled to India after being ousted from power last year.
Despite receiving the two-year custodial sentence, Siddiq is highly unlikely to spend any time behind bars in Bangladesh. She has remained in London throughout the proceedings, which have taken place entirely without her presence.
She vehemently refutes all accusations, including assertions that she wrongfully swayed her aunt, deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, to obtain a plot of land for her family, reports the Express.
The proceedings have come under fire from a group of prominent UK barristers, including former justice secretary Robert Buckland and former attorney general Dominic Grieve, who contended that Siddiq was refused adequate legal representation and that the case was “artificial and contrived.”
Siddiq’s legal team is contesting her status as a Bangladeshi citizen, pointing out that she hasn’t held a Bangladeshi passport since her childhood and has never possessed a voter ID or official ID card.
This calls into question the practical enforceability of the sentence. Bangladesh doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the UK, and it’s classified as a “2B” jurisdiction, meaning extradition would necessitate irrefutable evidence and formal legal proceedings.
Even if there’s an arrest warrant for Siddiq in Bangladesh, the UK isn’t obliged to force her to return. She also faces numerous ongoing trials and investigations in Bangladesh, but these are unlikely to impact her ability to live and work in the UK.
Her stepping down from her ministerial position in January was portrayed as a measure to avoid reputational risk, not a confession of guilt, and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s ethics review found no proof of misconduct.
Consequently, while the verdict holds symbolic significance, it is essentially unenforceable in practice.
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters.
#Labour #sentenced #years #prison #major #corruption #scandal
