SIT will not probe Sowjanya Case, clarifies Home Minister Dr. G. Parameshwara
Bengaluru: Home Minister Dr. G. Parameshwar on Sunday clarified that while the newly formed Special Investigation Team (SIT) will investigate the allegations of mass burials near Dharmasthala, it will not probe the 2012 rape and murder case of student Sowjanya.
Speaking to reporters in the city, Dr. Parameshwara said, “A person has submitted a statement in court alleging that multiple bodies have been buried around Dharmasthala. In response, the state government has constituted an SIT, headed by Director General of the Internal Security Division, Dr. Pronab Mohanty, to carry out a comprehensive investigation.”
He emphasized that the formation of the SIT was not due to any external pressure. “We had already assured the public of a high-level investigation, and the SIT has been formed accordingly. However, this team has not been tasked with investigating the Sowjanya case,” he clarified.
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Bangladesh court sentences Sheikh Hasina to 10 years in jail in corruption cases
Dhaka (PTI): A Bangladesh court on Monday sentenced deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to 10 years in jail in two separate corruption cases related to alleged irregularities in allocations of land in a government housing project.
Dhaka Special Judge’s Court-4 Judge Rabiul Alam handed down the verdicts, sentencing Hasina to a total of 10 years’ imprisonment — five years in each case, state-run BSS news agency reported.
The court sentenced 78-year-old Hasina, her nephew Radwan Mujib Siddiq, and her nieces, Tulip Rizwana Siddiq and Azmina Siddiq, and others in the cases over alleged irregularities in the allocation of plots under the Rajuk New Town Project in Purbachol.
The judgment was pronounced at around 12.30 pm.
Tulip Siddiq was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment — two years in each case — while Radwan Mujib Siddiq and Azmina Siddiq were each sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment in both cases.
Rajuk member Mohammad Khurshid Alam, the only accused to surrender before the court, was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment in each case, totalling two years.
The court also fined all convicted persons Tk1 lakh each and ordered them to serve an additional six months in prison in default of payment.
Hasina has been living in India since she fled Bangladesh on August 5 last year in the face of the massive protests. She was earlier declared a fugitive by the court.
The cases were filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) over alleged abuse of power in the allocation of two 10-katha plots.
According to the prosecution, the accused manipulated the allocation process and violated existing rules and regulations of the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk).
