Court sets Sept 10 for deposition in Khaleda cases

Witness deposition in the graft cases against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia has been deferred by a week.

The court of Dhaka Third Metropolitan Sessions Judge Basudeb Roy has set Sept 10 to record testimonies after a hearing on Wednesday, which was attended by the former prime minister.

The BNP chief is accused of embezzling Tk 52.5 million of the 'Zia Orphanage Trust' and the 'Zia Charitable Trust' in the cases filed by the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC).

ACC deputy directors Harunur Rashid Khan and Md Ibrahim were present at the court on Wednesday as witness deposition was scheduled for the day.

The court, however, deferred it following a plea by Khaleda's lawyers as her two pleas before the Appellate Division are yet to be resolved.

Photo: tanvir ahmed/bdnews24.com

The BNP chief was represented at the court by Khandaker Mahbub Hossain, Rafiqul Islam Miah and Mahbub Uddin Khokon while Mosharraf Hossain Kajal stood for the ACC.

On Jul 27, the same court had deferred the deposition of witnesses in the two cases and set Wednesday as Khaleda did not attend the hearing.

It had then also ordered the BNP chief to appear before the court.

On Mar 19, charges were framed against eight including Khaleda and her elder son Tarique Rahman in the two cases accusing them of embezzlement.

Khaleda, on May 12, challenged the legality of the appointment of Judge Basudeb Roy.

She also sought a stay on the case proceedings.

On May 25, the High Court bench of Justices Farah Mahbub and Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo delivered a split verdict on the plea regarding the legality of the judge’s appointment.

Earlier the former prime minister had moved High Court challenging the indictment but it dismissed her plea.

Justice Farah Mahbub issued a ruling and ordered a freeze on the proceedings in the cases, while Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo wanted to scrap the petitions.

As per rule, the matter was forwarded to the chief justice who assigned Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque’s bench to hear the petitions.

The bench also dismissed the petitions on June 19.

Photo: tanvir ahmed/bdnews24.com

Khaleda then filed two petitions to the Appellate Division against the dismissal.

The Anti-Corruption Commission in 2008 filed a case against six, including Khaleda and her son Tarique Rahman, for allegedly siphoning off Tk 21 million from the ‘Zia Orphanage Trust’ funds, which reportedly came from a foreign bank.

Charges were pressed against them two years later.

In 2011, the ACC accused the BNP chief and three others of misappropriating Tk 31.5 million from the ‘Zia Charitable Trust’.

The national anti-graft agency started prosecution against the four by submitting a charge-sheet against them in 2012.