Bangladesh court issues arrest warrant against Sheikh Hasina and 18 others in graft case

A Bangladeshi court on Thursday issued a fresh arrest warrant against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, her daughter Saima Wajed Putul, and 17 others, in connection with a graft case involving the illegal procurement of a residential plot. The arrest warrants were issued after the accused failed to appear in court, and the court accepted a charge sheet submitted by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Zakir Hossain Galib accepted the ACC's charge sheet and ordered the arrest of the absconding individuals. The case revolves around allegations that Hasina and her daughter used fraudulent means to obtain a residential plot in the Purbachal New City Housing Project, located on the outskirts of Dhaka.

According to the charge sheet, Putul exerted undue influence on her mother, then-Prime Minister Hasina, to



bypass the state-run Rajdhani Unyan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) and unlawfully secure the plot, violating the legal procedures governing land allocation. The ACC claims that Putul and her family already owned properties in Dhaka, further undermining the legitimacy of their actions.

Putul, who is currently serving as the South East Asian regional director for the World Health Organisation (WHO) in New Delhi, has also been implicated in the case.

In addition to this case, the ACC recently launched a probe into the alleged mismanagement of Taka 4,000 crore during the "Mujib Centenary" celebrations, which were held in 2020 to mark the 100th birthday of Bangladesh's founding father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Hasina and her sister, Sheikh Rehana, along with former principal secretary Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury, are under investigation for their roles in the spending.