BANGLA GOVT TO DECIDE ON WAIVING ZIA’S SENTENCES

Dhaka, March 4: Bangladesh will decide on relaxing the bail conditions and waiving the 17-year sentence of former prime minister Khaleda Zia due to her failing health after discussion with the Law Ministry, media reports quoted the country's home minister as saying.

The government in March, 2020 released the

74-year-old leader for six months on condition that she would stay at home amid the Coronavirus outbreak in the country, receive treatment and not travel abroad. Her release was later extended by another six months last September.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chief is serving a 17-year prison term in two graft cases since February 8,

2018.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Wednesday said that the decision of releasing BNP chairperson Zia by suspending her sentence would be taken after discussions with the Law Ministry, the Dhaka Tribune reported.

London, March 4: Buckingham Palace has launched an investigation into allegations that Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, bullied staff during her time as a frontline royal with Prince Harry in Britain. Markle, 39, lived at Kensington Palace for nearly a year after her marriage to Prince Harry, 36, the Duke of Sussex, in May 2018.

The probe comes as The Times published a leaked email on Wednesday from a staff member alleging that the former American actress drove two personal assistants out of the household and undermined the confidence of a third member of staff. "We are clearly very concerned about allegations in the ‘Times' following claims made by former staff of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex,” Buckingham Palace, which is responsible for all Royal Household staff, said in a statement.

"Accordingly, our HR team will look into the circumstances outlined in the article. Members of staff involved at the time, including those who have

left the Household, will be invited to participate to see if lessons can be learned,” it said. "The Royal Household has had a Dignity at Work policy in place for a number of years and does not and will not tolerate bullying or harassment in the workplace," it said.

Past and present royal employees are to be invited to speak in confidence about their experiences of working for the Duchess as part of the investigation. Lawyers for the couple, who stepped back as frontline royals last year, have said they are the victims of a calculated smear campaign based on "misleading and harmful misinformation".