Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina appeared in court Monday where it was confirmed she would be facing extortion charges, a state prosecutor said.The leader of the Awami League, one of Bangladesh’s main parties, was led to the dock amid high security at the special courtroom in the parliament complex in Dhaka, said state prosecutor Mohammad Borhanuddin. “After the hearing, judge Azizul Haq ruled that his court has the jurisdiction to hear the extortion case against Sheikh Hasina,” said Borhanuddin. “The court has fixed December 9 the next date of hearing when it is expected to lay the charges against her and start the trial,” he said. State lawyers have said Sheikh Hasina, who ruled the country in 1996-2001, faces two charges - namely extortion and threatening to extort.
If found guilty she faces a maximum of five years in jail. She has been accused of extorting 29.9 million taka (435,000 dollars) from the owner of a business group in 2000, and was arrested on July 16 after the owner filed an extortion case against her at a Dhaka police station.