Bangladesh's ousted leader sentenced to six months over a claim she had a license to kill

A special tribunal has sentenced Bangladesh’s former leader Sheikh Hasina to six months in jail after she was found in contempt of court for allegedly claiming she had a license to kill at least 227 people.

DHAKA, Bangladesh — A special tribunal has sentenced Bangladesh’s former leader Sheikh Hasina to six months in jail after she was found in contempt of court for allegedly claiming she had a license to kill at least 227 people.

Wednesday’s sentence was the first in any case against Hasina since she fled to India during a mass uprising last year that toppled her 15-year rule.

The contempt case stemmed from a leaked audio recording of a supposed phone conversation between Hasina and a leader of the student wing of her political party. A person alleged to be Hasina is heard on the audio saying: “There are 227 cases against me, so I now have a license to kill 227 people.”

The Criminal Investigation Department confirmed the audio’s authenticity through forensic analysis.

The recording showed Hasina’s anger at the charges of murder and numerous other crimes against her under the interim administration of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, who vowed to punish Hasina and her top aides for the deaths of hundreds of people in the uprising against her.