Court to hear 11 cases against Khaleda Zia on Oct 20

The court has set Oct 20 to hear 11 cases against former Prime Minister and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, including charges of murder and sedition.

The date was set by Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge KM Imrul Kayesh, according to Zia Uddin Zia, one of the lawyers associated with the cases.

These cases were to be heard on Aug 10 last year, but regular court proceedings were brought to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic. The new date was set after the court resumed its usual work.

Eight of the cases were filed with the Darus Salam Police Station and two at the Jatrabari Police Station. The eleventh is the sedition case. The High Court had previously stayed all court proceedings in favour of Khaleda.

Among these cases, the chargesheet for a murder case at Jatrabari Police Station is to be submitted to the court. A hearing of the charges has been scheduled for the remaining 10 cases.

The sedition case was filed against Khaleda on Jan 25, 2016 for disputing the number of Bangladeshi martyrs killed during the Liberation War.

The murder case at the Jatrabari Police Station is connected to a petrol bomb attack on a Glory Transport passenger bus in Jatrabari’s Katherpul area on Jan 23, 2015 that wounded 29. One of the victims – 60-year-old Noor Alam – later died of his burns at Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Dec 1.

On Jan 24, 2015, Jatrabari Police SI KM Nuruzzaman filed a case over the incident, accusing Khaleda of ordering the attack. DB Police Inspector Bashir Ahmed submitted a chargesheet to the court in the case against Khaleda and 37 others on May 6 of that year.

The eight cases at Darus Salam Police Station accuse the BNP chairperson of involvement with violence in the area in 2015.

Police submitted chargesheets in these cases at different points in 2017. Khaleda was shown as a fugitive in each of these cases and law enforcers petitioned the court for an arrest warrant for the BNP chief. Khaleda later surrendered to the court and secured bail.