The High Court has issued two separate rules asking why the constituency seats of Mohammad Shahid Islam Papul (Laxmipur-2) and Md Harunur Rashid (Chapainawabganj-3) should not be declared vacant.
Papul, who was arrested by Kuwaiti authorities in a human trafficking case, is charged with providing false information in election statement while BNP lawmaker Harunur Rashid is punished by a court in a tax evasion case.
The bench of Justice Obaidul Hassan and Justice AKM Zahirul Hoque came up with the orders on Tuesday after hearing two separate writs.
State lawyer for the bench, Deputy Attorney General Jesmin Sultana Shamsad confirmed the matter to Dhaka Tribune.
Advocate Sheikh Awsafur Rahman stood for the writ against MP Papul.
The lawyer said Papul submitted forged certificates of his education in his election statement. The university mentioned in the election statement does not exist in the country.
Also Read- MP Papul graft scandal: Thousands of Pakistanis, Iraqis entered Kuwait paying bribes
He said other issues including his arrest in Kuwait were also mentioned in the court’s submission.
Among others, the speaker and the secretary of the parliament were made respondent to the writ.
Kuwaiti authorities arrested Papul on June 6 and pressed charges of human trafficking and money laundering against him.
Papul confessed to bribing Kuwait officials, local media reported citing his statement given to the investigators.
Meanwhile, BNP lawmaker Md Harunur Rashid was found guilty and in a 2007 case filed by Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) for evading taxes by abusing the duty-free car import facilities as a MP.
A Dhaka Special Judge’s Court sentenced him to five year imprisonment on October 20, 2019.
Harunur Rashid, one of only seven sitting BNP MPs in the House, was convicted for the crime of not paying taxes while importing a Tk11.65 lakh luxury vehicle in 2004.
Judge Shaikh Nazmul Alam of Dhaka Special Judge Court 4 also fined the Chapainawabganj-3 lawmaker Tk50 lakh, upon delivering the verdict with Harun present in court.
Afterwards, the court cancelled his bail and sent him to jail.
On October 28, 2019, MP Md Harunur Rashid secured interim bail from the High Court.