British MP,  Tulip Siddiq, given jail sentence by a Bangladeshi court

Dhaka  – A Bangladeshi court on Monday handed down a two-year jail sentence to British MP and former Minister, Tulip Siddiq, on corruption allegations.

She was found guilty of influencing her aunt, Bangladesh's ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, to secure a plot of land for her family in the outskirts of the capital Dhaka, a claim she strongly denies.

Siddiq, who is based in London and has rejected the charges, is unlikely to serve the sentence, BBC news reported.

The sitting MP for Hampstead and Highgate continues to face a number of outstanding charges in Bangladesh.

The Dhaka court convicted and sentenced ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina to five years' imprisonment, her sister Sheikh Rehana to seven years, and Rehana's daughter Tulip Siddiq to two years for Purbachal plot allocation scam, Dhaka Tribune reported.

Since Hasina's regime was overturned, prosecutors in Bangladesh have launched a number of wide-ranging legal cases against the former leader, her past associates and family members.

Court documents included claims that Siddiq "forced and influenced her aunt and the former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina using her special power to secure [a plot of land] for her mother Rehana Siddiq, sister Azmina Siddiq and brother Radwan Siddiq".

A prosecutor for Bangladesh's Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) previously said Siddiq was tried as a Bangladeshi citizen as authorities had obtained her Bangladeshi passport, ID and tax number.

Siddiq's lawyers have disputed she is a Bangladeshi citizen, telling the Financial Times she has "never had" an ID card or voter ID, and "has not held a passport since she was a child".

A statement on her behalf said, "I have been clear from the outset that I have done nothing wrong and will respond to any credible evidence that is presented to me. Continuing to smear my name to score political points is both baseless and damaging."

She has not commented publicly since the verdict was delivered.

Last week, a group of senior lawyers raised concerns with Bangladesh's representative in the UK over how the trial had been conducted.

Only last month, Bangladesh's former prime minister, Sheikh Hasina,  was sentenced to death for crimes against humanity over her crackdown on student-led protests which led to her ousting.

Sheikh Hasina was found guilty of allowing lethal force to be used against protesters, 1,400 of whom died during the unrest last year.