The High Court yesterday extended the stay order by six months on the proceedings of Barapukuria coal mine graft case against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.
The bench of Justice Md Nuruzzaman and Justice Zafar Ahmed passed the order in response to a petition filed by Khaleda’s lawyer AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon.
In 2008, the High Court stayed the case proceedings, and in a ruling asked the government and the Anti-Corruption Commission to explain why the case should not be dropped.
The court had extended the stay order on the case several times in the past. The latest six-month extension was ordered on September 2 last year.
The verdict on Khaleda’s petition that challenged the case’s legality was expected to be delivered on March 10 this year but was adjourned twice until March 15 and April 5.
On April 2, the BNP chairperson’s lawyers submitted a no-confidence petition to the chief justice against the two judges – Justice Md Moinul Islam Chowdhury and Justice JBM Hassan – who were dealing with the case.
But the two judges sent the case documents to the chief justice for a decision, saying that Khaleda’s counsels did not co-operate with them.
Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha on Monday forwarded the documents to the bench of Justice Md Nuruzzaman and Justice Zafar Ahmed, which yesterday extended the stay order.
