A Bangladeshi court ordered the seizure of cricketer Shakib Al Hasan’s assets in the latest legal headache for the sports star over his allegiance to the country’s former leader.

Shakib is a former lawmaker from the party of autocratic ex-leader Sheikh Hasina, who was overthrown in a student-led uprising last year and fled by helicopter to neighbouring India.

His links to Hasina made him a target of public anger and he was among dozens facing murder investigations for a deadly police crackdown on protesters during the uprising.

He has not been charged over those allegations but is currently being prosecuted on fraud charges for allegedly bouncing cheques totalling more than $300,000.

A magistrate in the capital Dhaka ordered the seizure on Monday after a warrant for Shakib’s arrest was issued by the court in January.

Shakib was playing in a domestic Twenty20 cricket competition in Canada when Hasina’s government collapsed and has not returned to Bangladesh since.

The left-arm allrounder has played 71 Tests, 247 one-day internationals and 129 Twenty20s for Bangladesh, taking a combined 712 wickets.

Opinion

Editorial

Exit strategy
18 Mar, 2026

Exit strategy

MOST members of the international community, particularly states in the greater Middle East, are gravely concerned...
Unsafe trains
18 Mar, 2026

Unsafe trains

SUNDAY’S accident involving the Shalimar Express has once again brought into sharp focus the deep structural and...
Disappointment in Dhaka
18 Mar, 2026

Disappointment in Dhaka

FOR a side looking for lift-off after a disappointing T20 World Cup, it was despair for Shaheen Shah Afridi’s ...
Missing in action
17 Mar, 2026

Missing in action

NOT exactly known for playing a proactive role in protecting the interests of Muslim nations and populations...
Risk to stability
Updated 17 Mar, 2026

Risk to stability

THE risks to Pakistan’s fragile economic recovery from the US-Israel war on Iran cannot be dismissed. Yet the...
Enrolment push
17 Mar, 2026

Enrolment push

THE federal government has embarked upon the welcome initiative to enrol 25,000 out-of-school children in Islamabad...