Tarique gets 9 years’ jail, Zubaida 3 years

Court Correspondent :
BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman yesterday was sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment while his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman to three years in a graft case filed in 2007 on the charges of amassing assets illegally and concealing information of their assets.
Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Md Asaduzzaman on Wednesday pronounced the judgment in absence of the convicts in his crowded courtroom. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed the case in 2007.

Tarique was also fined Tk three crore, in default, he will have to suffer three more years in the prison while Zubaida was fined 45 lakh, in default, one more month in the prison.
Advocate Mosharraf Hossain Kajal submitted arguments on behalf of the ACC during the hearing.
Earlier in the day, many pro-BNP lawyers were demonstrating on the court premises against the trial of Tarique and Zubaida. Ahead of delivering the verdict, additional police forces were deployed on the court premises.

On July 27, the prosecution completed their arguments and sought highest punishment of the accused. Earlier, the court recorded the depositions of 42 prosecution witnesses (PWs) out of 56. The two accused were shown fugitives in charge sheet. On February 6 of this year, a gazette was published year asking them to appear in the court.

BNP apprehended ‘dictated’ verdict against Tarique, Zubaida. However, no lawyer was allowed to stand for the accused as they were absconding. The court examined the testimonies of 43 witnesses which it completed recording on July 24.
The court began the trial against the accused on April 13 after framing charges against them. Before that, the court rejected a lawyer’s petition seeking permission to defend the accused.
Tariue and Zubaida have been living in London since 2008.

Tarique is accused in 15 other cases, mostly filed during the caretaker government rule in 2007 and 2008, and Zubaida has been convicted only in this case.
Tarique was sentenced to life imprisonment in the August 21 grenade attack case. He was also sentenced in two other cases, including the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case.
Earlier on November 1 of last year, accepting the charges brought against Tarique and Zubaida the court issued arrest warrants for them in the case.

On June 26, the High Court declared Tarique and Zubaida “fugitives” and ordered the judicial court to dispose of the case as soon as possible. The apex court also rejected the couple’s writ petitions, challenging the corruption case against them for acquiring wealth beyond their known sources of income and concealing information in their wealth statements.
The court also withdrew the stay order on the trial proceedings of the case filed against them.
On September 26, 2007, ACC sued Tarique Rahman, Dr Zubaida Rahman and her mother Syeda Iqbal Mand Banu with Kafrul Police Station for amassing illegal wealth and concealing wealth information.

Tarique was accused of earning wealth over Tk 4.82 crore illegally and concealing information of assets worth over Tk 4.23 crore in his wealth statement submitted to the ACC.
Zubaida and mother were accused of abetting Tarique in establishing that the money was earned through legal means, ACC Deputy Director Muhammad Jahirul Huda, who is also the complainant of the case, mentioned in the case statement filed with Kafrul Police Station in the capital.
Tarique submitted his wealth statement to the anti-graft body on June 10, 2007, through the jail authorities, claiming to have asses in the name of his wife, his daughter and himself worth Tk 1.37 crore.
Complainant Jahirul Huda submitted a report to the ACC on July 25, 2007, after investigation into Tarique’s wealth account. In their investigation it was found that Tarique owner of Bangla newspaper the Dainik Dinkal by taking over it as the publisher and printer from Mazidul Islam through an agreement on August 12 of 1998.
The complainant ACC official mentioned in the case statement that according to vouchers, cashbooks, ledgers and audit reports, becoming the newspaper’s owner Tarique owned over Tk 4.15 crore against an investment of over Tk 1.74 crore.

Besides, Tarique concealed information about 250 shares of Rahman Group worth Tk 2.5 lakh in his wealth statement.
It was also mentioned in the state statement that Tarique, his wife and daughter own land and three Fixed Deposit Receipts (FDR) worth Tk 58.45 lakh. But the wealth did not match with Tarique’s actual income.

Of the wealth, 2.01 acres of land at Gabtoli of Bogura was in Tarique’s name. His wife had two FDRs- one worth Tk 25 lakh and the other Tk 10 lakh with the Banani branch of Prime Bank Limited. Besides, there was an FDR worth Tk 20 lakh with the Banani branch of Dhaka Bank Limited in the name of Tarique’s daughter Zaima Rahman.
In his wealth statement, Tarique mentioned that be bought a piece of land for Tk 3.45 lakh in May of 2003 with the money he had earned from business. However, his total expenditure during 2001-2006 was more than his income, which means he bought the land property through dishonest means or with unknown sources of income. The case statement of Zubaida says that her mother provided the money for two FDRs.

Iqbal Mand Banu also said she provided the amount from the money she had got at a time renting out her houses at Mohakali and Motijheel areas.
In the primary investigation, their claims proved to be false. It was also found one Enayetul Bari Jewel, who has no relation with Zubaida, deposited the money with the bank for opening the EDRs.
The Investigation Officer mentioned that Tarique provided the money from his undeclared income.
The case statement further says Tarique claimed that he provided Tk 20 lakh for opening the FDR for his daughter taking loan from Rahman Group, but no evidence was found about that loan.