A Dhaka court has set May 19 for the hearing on charge framing in the Niko graft case filed against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, and ten others.
Judge Sheikh Hafizur Rahman of Dhaka Special Judge Court 9—set up inside Old Dhaka Central Jail—set the date, on Monday. This followed Khaleda's lawyer Masud Ahmed Talukder seeking time as she—and another accused Barrister Moudud Ahmed—could not appear before the court due to illness.
The other accused are: AKM Mosharraf Hossain, former state minister for energy; Kamal Uddin Siddique, former principal secretary to prime minister; Khandaker Shahidul Islam, former acting energy secretary; CM Yousuf Hossain, former senior assistant secretary of Energy and Mineral Resources Department; Meer Moynul Haque, former senior general manager of Bapex; Shafiur Rahman, former secretary of Bapex; Giasuddin Al Mamun, managing director of One Group; Selim Bhuiyan, chairman and managing director of International Travel Corporation; and Kashem Sharif, vice-president (South Asia) of Niko Resources Bangladesh Ltd.
According to the case, on December 9, 2007, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed the case with Tejgaon police station over charges that Khaleda—and several others—abused power to award a gas exploration and extraction deal to Canadian company Niko, during her tenure as prime minister between 2001 and 2006.
On May 5, 2008, the anti-graft watchdog submitted a charge sheet against Khaleda and 10 others in the graft case.
Two months later, the High Court stayed the proceedings of the case following a petition filed by Khaleda.
Following an ACC move, on June 18, 2016, the High Court cleared the way for the trial proceedings to resume against Khaleda and others in the case.
Khaleda Zia is currently undergoing treatment at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU).
Khaleda, a former prime minister, was convicted in the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case on February 8, 2018. She was sentenced to five years' imprisonment, which later was enhanced to ten years by the High Court.
Khaleda was also sentenced to seven years' imprisonment in the Zia Charitable Trust graft case.