Labor MP and former minister Tulip Siddiq has been sentenced to two years in prison after being tried along with 16 others on corruption charges in Bangladesh.
She was found guilty of influencing her aunt, ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, to secure the family’s land outside the capital Dhaka, an accusation she strongly denies.
Siddique, who lives in London and has denied the charges, is unlikely to be sentenced.
The incumbent MP for Hampstead and Highgate continues to face a number of outstanding charges in Bangladesh.
Since the overthrow of Hasina’s government, Bangladesh prosecutors have filed a number of extensive legal cases against the former leader, her former associates and her family.
The trial involving Siddiq, who quit his post as finance minister in January amid controversy over his relationship with his aunt, has been underway in Dhaka since August.
Court documents include allegations that Siddiq “used his special powers to coerce and influence her aunt and former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to secure (land) for her mother Rehana Siddique, sister Azmina Siddique and brother Radwan Siddique.”
Bangladesh Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) prosecutors previously said Siddiq was tried as a Bangladeshi citizen because he had obtained a Bangladeshi passport, identity card and tax number.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Siddique’s lawyers disputed that she was a citizen of Bangladesh, saying she had “never had” an identity card or voter ID and had “never held a passport since she was a child.”
She was sentenced by Judge Rabiul Alam to two years in prison and a fine of 100,000 Bangladeshi Taka ($821, 620 pounds). Failure to pay will add six months to your sentence.
As the trial began, the congressman said prosecutors “spread false and vexatious claims that have been reported in the media but have never been formally presented to me by investigators.”
A statement on her behalf continued: “I have made it clear from the beginning that I have done nothing wrong and that I will respond to any credible evidence presented to me. Continuing to tarnish my name to score political points is baseless and damaging.”
She has not commented publicly since the verdict was handed down.
A Labor spokesman said the party could not accept the ruling.
“As reported, highly regarded senior legal experts have emphasized that Tulip Siddique has not had access to a fair legal process in this case and was never informed of the details of the allegations against her,” the spokesperson said.
“This is despite repeated requests to the Bangladeshi authorities through her legal team.
“Anyone facing any charges should always be guaranteed the right to legal defense when charges are brought against them.”
It is understood that Mr Siddique is not the subject of any investigation or party disciplinary proceedings and remains a Labor member and member of the Labor Party in the House of Commons.
Last week, a group of senior lawyers raised concerns with Bangladesh’s representative in the UK about how the trial was conducted.
Signatories of the statement included former Attorney-General Robert Buckland, former Attorney-General Dominic Grieve and Cherie Blair, a human rights lawyer and wife of former Prime Minister Tony Blair.
In the letter, first reported by the Guardian, they said Siddique failed to secure adequate legal representation during the trial, adding: “These procedures are artificial and an artificial and unfair way to pursue prosecution.”
The ruling comes two weeks after Hasina was sentenced to death in a separate trial for her role in the brutal crackdown on protests that ultimately forced Hasina to leave office in July 2024.
She was found guilty of crimes against humanity over the incident that left about 1,400 people dead at the hands of police.
The trial was held in the absence of Hasina, who went into exile in India after her ouster. She denied the charges.
Siddique, whose mother is the former prime minister’s sister, continues to face several outstanding charges in Bangladesh, including two ongoing trials related to the charges at the center of Monday’s ruling.
She is also being investigated for allegedly transferring an apartment located in a lucrative area of Dhaka to her sister.
Siddique and her family were also investigated in connection with allegations that they embezzled around £3.9 billion in 2013 in connection with a Russian-funded nuclear power plant deal.
Siddiq has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in relation to the allegations, which stemmed from claims by Hasina’s political opponent Bobby Hajjaj.
Bangladeshi authorities say they estimate about $234 billion (£174 billion) was appropriated through corruption during Hasina’s time in power.
Hasina’s political party, the Awami League, called the ruling “completely predictable” and said it “categorically denied” the allegations against the former prime minister and his family.
“This process fails any reasonable test of judicial fairness – a point that has been strongly asserted by both national and international legal experts,” the party said.
Hasina also accused Bangladesh’s judiciary of being controlled by an “unelected government run by political opponents of the Awami League”, namely the interim government led by Dr. Muhammad Yunus.
Before Siddique resigned from the British government, Sir Rory Magnus, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s independent ethics adviser, said the investigation had found “no evidence of impropriety”.
But he said it was “regrettable” that Siddique had not paid more attention to the “potential reputational risk” posed by his relationship with Hasina.
Siddiq continued to insist he was innocent of any wrongdoing, but quit his job as a junior minister to avoid “disturbing” the government.
The UK has no extradition treaty with Bangladesh. It is classified as a 2B country, which means that clear evidence must be presented to lawyers and judges to grant extradition.
Despite authorities issuing an arrest warrant, Siddiq was not forced to return to Dhaka for trial.
