High Court to hear bail petitions for Khaleda Zia in three cases

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s lawyers have petitioned the High Court for bail in three cases in Cumilla and Norail.

The bail petitions may be heard by the High Court bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice JBM Hassan on Sunday afternoon, said Khaleda’s lawyer Md Ehsanur Rahman.

They sent the petitions to the relevant branch of the Supreme Court after receiving the permission of the bench, he told bdnews24.com.

Former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia has been serving a five-year prison sentence at the jail at Nazimuddin Road since the verdict in the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case on Feb 8.

Though she received a four-month bail in the case, she has not been released due to several other pending cases.

The two cases filed in Cumilla include a murder case involving the bombing of a bus and a case over the illegal use of explosive substances. The Norail case charges her with defamation.

Eight people were killed after a night coach was petrol bombed in Chauddagram on Feb 3, 2015 during the BNP-Jamaat alliance’s protests. Two separate cases – one for murder, the other under the Explosives Act – were filed over the incident.

A warrant was issued for Khaleda’s arrest after police filed the charge sheet in the two cases. The state then filed to have her shown arrested over the graft case in Dhaka.

The Cumilla Chief Judicial Magistrate’s court then ordered Khaleda Zia to be brought for a hearing on Mar 26. The BNP chief has yet to be brought to court due to her illness.

Khaleda’s lawyers then moved the Cumilla District and Sessions Judge’s court for her bail in the two cases on Apr 23. The hearing has been set for Jun 7. Khaleda’s lawyers then requested the date be brought forward, but the proposal was rejected.

Khaleda’s lawyer Masud Rana said that they have challenged the decision at the High Court and have filed for bail there.

The Norail case accuses the BNP chief of making ‘adverse comments’ regarding the Liberation War death count. The case was filed by Norail district administration Ward-1 member and Noragati Awami League Joint General Raihan Farooki on Dec 24, 2015.

The court issued an arrest warrant against Khaleda Zia in the case in August 2016 after she failed to attend hearings.

Her lawyers filed for bail in the case, but it was dismissed by the trial court. The decision was challenged at the High Court, said Masud Rana.