Barapukuria coalmine graft case: Khaleda refuses to go to court

A Dhaka judge has set a hearing on charges against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia for Apr 9 as she skipped a court appearance on Wednesday.

The former prime minister, who is now in jail for two other graft cases, was expected to appear in the Dhaka Special Judge's Court-2 on Wednesday.

As the jail authorities failed to produce her before the court, the hearing of the charges in the case was adjourned, said ACC lawyer Mosharraf Hossain Kajol.

“The senior jail superintendent wrote that the prisoner was unwilling to go to court,” Kajol told bdnews24.com.

Khaleda’s lawyer Masud Ahmed Talukder said: “We did not get the relevant documents of the case. We applied for the documents. On the other hand, we sought more time for hearing as Khaleda Zia and Aminul Islam accused in the case did not appear before the court.”

The judge then adjourned the hearing until Apr 9.

The Barapukuria coalmine case was filed against 16 suspects, including former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and 10 members of her cabinet, during the rule of the military-backed caretaker government in 2008. The ACC had filed charges on Oct 5 of that year.

The suspects are accused of causing about Tk 1.59 billion in damages to the state through the agreement on the construction, management and maintenance of the Barapukuria coalmine with the China-based Consortium of China National Machineries Import and Export Corporation.