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 to have a licence to kill at least 227 people.

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

The contempt case stemmed from a leaked audio recording of a supposed phone conversation between Ms Hasina and a leader of the student wing of her political party. 

A person alleged to be Ms Hasina is heard on the audio saying: “There are 227 cases against me, so I now have a licence to kill 227 people.”

The recording showed Ms Hasina’s anger at the charges brought against her and top aides over the murder of hundreds of people during the uprisings against her rule. 

The sentencing by the Dhaka-based International Crimes Tribunal came as she is being tried in absentia on charges of crimes against humanity, in proceedings that began last month.

The tribunal had ordered Ms Hasina and her former home minister to respond by May 15. When they failed to do so, the tribunal summoned them May 25 to appear in court on June 16. 

The prosecution said later that neither of the suspects had appeared before the court or explained their absence through a lawyer. In such circumstances, the tribunal has the authority to issue a sentence.

The administration of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus has banned Ms Hasina’s Awami League and amended laws to allow for it to be prosecuted for its role during the uprising.

In February, the United Nations human rights office estimated that up to 1,400 people may have been killed in Bangladesh during the three-week crackdown on the student-led protests against Ms Hasina, who was the country’s longest-serving prime minister.