UK lawmaker Tulip Siddiq calls Bangladeshi prison sentence 'flawed and farcical'
She has previously dismissed the allegations as a "politically motivated smear"
British lawmaker Tulip Siddiq said a Bangladeshi court process which has sentenced her in absentia to two years in prison was "flawed and farcical" and said the verdict should be treated with contempt.
"This whole process has been flawed and farcical from the beginning to the end. The outcome of this kangaroo court is as predictable as it is unjustified," she said today (1 December), reports Reuters.
A spokesperson for her Labour Party said Tulip Siddiq did not get access to a fair legal process in the case and had not been informed of the details of the charges against her.
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"Anyone facing any charge should always be afforded the right to make legal representations when allegations are made against them. Given that has not happened in this case, we cannot recognise this judgment," the spokesperson said.
Britain does not have an extradition treaty with Bangladesh.
A Dhaka court today (1 December) has sentenced Sheikh Rehana to seven years in prison, her daughter British MP Tulip Siddiq to two years and ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina to five years in prison in a case over irregularities in Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk) plot allocation.
Sheikh Rehana has also been fined Tk1 lakh, and failure to pay will result in six months' additional imprisonment. Tulip and Sheikh Hasina have also been fined the same amount with the same penalty upon failure to pay.
Hasina's Awami League party said the verdict was the latest example of what it says is a politically driven process led by "desperate, unelected men" - a reference to Bangladesh's interim government headed by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.
Tulip Siddiq, the niece of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, resigned as Britain's minister responsible for financial services and anti-corruption efforts in January after scrutiny over her financial ties to Hasina but she remains a member of parliament.
She has previously dismissed the allegations as a "politically motivated smear".
