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Published : 30 Nov 2025, 01:07 PM
A Dhaka court has set Jan 5 for the testimony of the investigation officer in a corruption case against 17 people, including ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina's niece Azmina Siddiq Ruponti, involving alleged illegal plot allocations in the Purbachal New Town Project.
The Anti-Corruption Commission’s (ACC) investigation officer, Assistant Director Afnan Jannat Keya, appeared before Dhaka Special Judge Court-4 to provide her testimony on Sunday, but the court could not proceed as it was occupied with another case, ACC prosecutor Khan Md Mainul Hasan said.
Judge Rabiul Alam later rescheduled the date for recording her statement.
The case is one of three tied to alleged irregularities in plot allocations in the government-run Purbachal development project that are still ongoing. Two other related cases are being heard by the same court, one of which is scheduled for verdict on Monday and another for testimony on Tuesday.
The cases went to trial after charges were framed against the accused on Jul 31.
Besides members of the Hasina family, the accused include senior officials from the Ministry of Housing and Public Works and the capital’s development agency, RAJUK.
In January, the ACC filed six separate cases accusing Hasina, her children Sajeeb Wazed Joy and Saima Wazed Putul, her sister Sheikh Rehana, Rehana’s children -- British MP Tulip Siddiq, Azmina and Radwan Mujib Siddiq Bobby -- of receiving plots unlawfully.
Chargesheets have been submitted in all the cases. Arrest warrants were issued after the accused failed to appear in court.
On Nov 27, verdicts were delivered in three of the cases, with 23 people convicted. Hasina received a 21-year prison sentence, while Joy and Putul were each given five-year jail terms. One defendant was acquitted, and 19 others received varying prison sentences.
According to the chargesheets, Hasina abused her authority as prime minister to secure six Purbachal plots for herself and family members despite their ineligibility, in what investigators describe as allocation “for improper gain”.
