Former Bangladeshi ruler considers verdict illegitimate
A Bangladeshi court on Monday sentenced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to the death penalty, who was found responsible for ordering the violent repression of a student uprising last year.
The decision ends months of very controversial legal proceedings, marked by international criticism.
Hasina rejects all accusations and considers the verdict illegitimate, stating that the conviction was handed down by “a manipulated court, created and presided over by an unelected government with no democratic mandate.”
The former government official also denounces “biased and politically motivated verdicts”, claiming that she did not have “a fair opportunity to defend herself in court”.
“The verdicts announced against me were handed down by a manipulated court, created and presided over by an unelected government with no democratic mandate. They are biased and politically motivated verdicts. I was not given a fair opportunity to defend myself in court. I am not afraid to face my accusers in a proper court where the evidence can be weighed and tested fairly,” he said, quoted by Reuters.
