Niko graft case: Hearing on Khaleda’s plea against indictment adjourned till Aug 14
Staff Reporter :
The High Court on Wednesday adjourned till August 14 the hearing on a petition filed by BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, challenging a lower court order that framed charges against her and seven others in the Niko corruption case.
The High Court Bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Aminul Islam set the date after a partly hearing on the petition on Wednesday.
The court said that it will not defer the hearing anymore and conclude it on that day.
Barrister Kayser Kamal appeared in the court hearing on behalf of BNP Chairperson, while lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan represented the Anti-Corruption Com-mission (ACC) and Attorney General AM Amin Uddin appeared for the state.
During the hearing, Barrister Kayser Kamal said, “A case was also filed against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on charge of corruption while dealing with the Canadian energy company Niko Resources Ltd.
No charge sheet was submitted in that case. The High Court scrapped the case against her. However, the ACC didn’t file any appeal against the HC order.”
Then Khurshid Alam Khan said, “Why the ACC did not appeal against the HC order to quash the case against Sheikh Hasina is not the subject matter of this case.
A detailed explanation of why the case against Sheikh Hasina was scrapped is in the judgment of the High Court. Khaleda Zia’s case and the case against Sheikh Hasina are not the same.”
The ACC lawyer further said, “Testimony has been started in the trial court in the case.
In this situation they came to the High Court challenging the charge framing. The trial court concerned fixed August 22 for next testimony.
The trial court adjourns its proceedings when the High Court keeps pending any issue related the case. That is why the hearing in this case should be finished.”
Then the court said that it will not defer the hearing anymore and conclude it on that day.
Earlier on May 17, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia filed the petition with the High Court through her lawyer Barrister Kayser Kamal seeking repeal of the charge framing order in the Niko graft case.
On March 19, this year, Judge of the Special Judge’s Court-9 in Dhaka, Sheikh Md Hafizur Rahman, framed charges against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and seven others in the Niko graft case. The judge also fixed May 23 for testimony in the case.
In this circumstance, Khaleda Zia filed the revision petition challenging the legality of the charge framing order.
Khaleda Zia’s lawyer said, “In the Niko case, charges were framed against Khaleda Zia without following due process of law.”
The petitioner prayed to the HC to issue a rule upon the respondent to explain as to why the charge framing order against Khaleda Zia should not be declared illegal.
The petitioner also sought cancellation of the charge framing order. The state and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) have been made respondents in the petition.
The Anti-Corruption Commission filed the case in December 2007 over charges that Khaleda and 10 others abused power to award a gas exploration and extraction deal to Canadian company Niko when she was Prime Minister between 2001 and 2006.
