The High Court yesterday rejected the pleas that challenged the trial of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and other accused in two cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission. The decision came up by a majority view.
On May 25, two judges of a High Court bench passed split orders on Khaleda’s petitions, filed on May 12. Justice Farah Mahbub halted the trial proceedings for three months in the cases while Justice Kazi Ejarul Haque Akondo, the other judge, summarily rejected her petitions.
On Sunday, Chief Justice Md Muzammel Hossain assigned Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque to give decision so that the petitions could be resolved by a majority decision.
Justice Reza yesterday summarily rejected the petitions of the former premier after a two-day hearing.
Supreme Court lawyer AJ Mohammad Ali contended for Khaleda while Attorney General Mahbubey Alam pleaded for the government during the hearing.
Earlier in the day, Judge Basudev Roy, whose appointment was also challenged by Khaleda, for the third time deferred the recording of testimonies in the cases filed for embezzlement of funds in the Zia Charitable Trust and Zia Orphanage Trust.
The court set July 9 for the next hearing upon a defence plea that said two petitions had been pending with the High Court.
Khaleda, her elder son and party’s Senior Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman and seven others were indicted on March 19 in the two cases. The special court had also set April 21 to begin the trials.
Six people including Khaleda and Tarique were indicted in the orphanage trust case for embezzling over Tk2.1 crore by forming the “fake” trust in 1991. In the other case, the ACC accused four people including the BNP chief of raising funds by abusing power of the PMO during 2001-06.
Because of her absence and submission of time petitions, the charge framing was deferred 41 times in the orphanage trust case and 11 times in the charitable trust case.
