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Tarique, the eldest son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia, was convicted of accumulating wealth in excess of declared income
Published : 02 Aug 2023, 04:30 PM
BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman has been sentenced to nine years in jail, and his wife Zubaida Rahman to three years for accumulating wealth in excess of declared income.
Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Md Asaduzzaman delivered the verdict in the case on Wednesday.
Tarique, the eldest son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia, got six years in jail on one charge and three more on another. He has also been fined Tk 30 million. He will have to serve an additional three months if he fails to pay.
Zubaida was sentenced to three years in jail on two charges while being fined Tk 3.5 million. Failure to pay will add another month to the sentence.
The court also ordered authorities to seize Tk 27.4 million in assets as the unaccounted property of Tarique and Zubaida.
The Anti-Corruption Commission filed the case at Dhaka’s Kafrul Police Station in 2007, accusing the couple of owning Tk 48.15 million beyond their means and concealing information on their assets.
Tarique was then arrested over the charges. He secured bail in 2008 and travelled to the United Kingdom with his family for medical treatment and never returned. He became the senior vice chairman of the BNP while abroad, also becoming the acting chairman of the party after his mother was jailed.
Verdicts in four other cases against Tarique have been delivered already. He has been sentenced to two years in jail for derogatory remarks about Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, seven years in jail in a money laundering case, 10 years in jail in the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case, and life imprisonment in the Aug 21 grenade attack case.
Zubaida married Tarique in 1993. Zubaida joined the health cadre of the Bangladesh Civil Service two years later. The government sacked Zubaida in 2014 as she did not rejoin her workplace after taking a leave.
The BNP has always said the sentencings were ‘politically-motivated’, but the government has maintained that the country's judiciary is independent and the executive branch had no influence on court decisions.
Security was heightened on the court premises since the morning as pro-BNP lawyers carried out protests outside.
After the sentencing, several pro-BNP lawyers raised their shoes to express dissatisfaction over the verdict around 4 pm. Two or three pro-Awami League lawyers were physically harassed at the time and ended up with tattered shirts.
The protesting lawyers said the verdict was rushed and forced Tarique and Zubaida from running in the coming election.
Law Minister Anisul Huq said the verdict against the son of a former prime minister proved that the rule of law exists in Bangladesh.
He denied the BNP’s allegation that the charges against Tarique and Zubaida were false and deliberate while the verdict intended to mislead people before the next general election.
“The case was filed during a caretaker government controlled by an army chief appointed by them [BNP government]. They were close enough,” Anisul said.
Tarique was also convicted in other cases, including the 2004 grenade attack on an Awami League rally.
“We don’t need new cases to damage his reputation.”
Anisul also said the government’s efforts to make Tarique face justice by bringing him back from London will continue.
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the people do not accept the sentencing, which, he alleged, was ordered by the government.
“We strongly condemn this and protest against it. The people of the country reject this verdict and such farce in the name of justice with resentment.”
“It’s absolutely clear that the government seeks to force its main political opponent away from the upcoming election. They did it out of political vengeance.”
Jubo Dal, Swechchhasebak Dal and Chhatra Dal will hold protest rallies at metropolises and districts around the country over the verdict on Thursday.
The BNP’s Dhaka Metropolitan North and South units will hold a protest rally at its Naya Paltan headquarters on Aug 4.
CASE DETAILS
In 2007, Tarique's mother-in-law, Iqbal Mand Banu, was named as the third suspect in the case. Her name was later dropped after the case moved to the High Court.
After the chargesheet was submitted, the defence requested the High Court to drop the charges against Zubaida as well. The High Court issued a rule suspending case proceedings after the appeal and the Appellate Division upheld it.
After the final hearings in the case concluded in April 2017, the High Court turned down the petition to drop charges against Zubaida, who appealed against the decision later that year.
Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique then led a four-strong Appellate Division bench that turned down her leave to appeal petition and upheld the High Court’s decision as the case made headway.
In November last year, the court issued arrest warrants against Tarique and Zubaida before Senior Special Judge Asaduzzaman ordered framing charges against the couple in April.
Witness hearings began on May 21 and 43 of 57 witnesses provided testimony.
