Bangladesh court issues new arrest warrant against ousted PM Sheikh Hasina in graft case | World News
A Bangladesh court on Thursday issued a fresh arrest warrant against ousted Prime Miner Sheikh Hasina, her daughter Saima Wajed Putul, and 17 others in connection with a graft case involving alleged fraudulent acquisition of a residential plot.
Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Zakir Hossain Galib accepted the Anti-Corruption Commission’s (ACC) charge sheet and issued the warrants, noting that all accused were absconding.
“Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Mohammad Zakir Hossain Galib issued the warrant accepting the ACC charge sheet in the case,” ACC prosecutor Mir Ahammed Salam told reporters.
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The court directed the ACC to submit its investigation report on May 4 regarding the case, which centres on a piece of land leased the state-run Rajdhani Unyan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) in Purbachal, on Dhaka’s outskirts.
According to the charge sheet, Putul, currently the WHO’s Southeast Asia Regional Director, allegedly influenced her then-prime miner mother to pass standard procedures in securing the plot. The ACC said she applied directly to her mother, instead of RAJUK, in violation of exing laws and regulations, despite owning other properties under RAJUK’s jurisdiction.
The ACC had filed the case on January 12, 2025, against Hasina and several former government officials.
This development follows two previous arrest warrants issued Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal against Hasina and others for alleged crimes against humanity. It also comes a day after the ACC launched a new probe into the alleged misappropriation of Taka 4,000 crore during the “Mujib Centenary” celebrations, involving Hasina, her ser Sheikh Rehana, and retired official Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury.Story continues below this ad
The ACC chairman, Mohammad Abdul Momen, stated this week that fugitives—regardless of their identity—would face the same legal process. “The process to bring back a corrupt fugitive is the same, whether it’s Hasina or anyone else,” he said.
Hasina also faces other accusations including mass murder, enforced disappearances, and crimes against humanity. These charges are being processed the International Crimes Tribunal, originally set up to prosecute collaborators from the 1971 Liberation War.
The Awami League government, led Hasina for 16 years, was overthrown in August last year following a student-led uprising. Since then, 77-year-old Hasina has reportedly been living in India, which has yet to respond to Bangladesh’s request for her extradition.
(With Inputs from PTI)
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