HC transfers Khaleda's graft case to another court

The High Court has accepted BNP chief Khaleda Zia's appeal to shift the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption case to Dhaka's Senior Metropolitan Special Sessions Judge's Court. The bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Shahidul Karim on Tuesday also asked the new court to finish the trial proceedings within 60 days. Former prime minister Khaleda, her eldest son and presumed heir Tarique Rahman and four others stand accused of embezzling Tk2.1 crore from the orphanage trust fund. The Anti-Corruption Commission filed a case against them in 2008. The Special Judge's Court 3 of Dhaka had been dealing with the case. It rejected Khaleda's "no confidence" plea on February 3 saying she had been trying to disrupt trial proceedings. Khaleda moved the High Court on February 8 expressing "no confidence" over the lower court dealing with the case. She also requested the High Court to issue a rule over the case transfer and sought a stay order on the case proceedings until the rule was disposed of.