Court Correspondent :
A Dhaka Court on Sunday deferred the charge hearing in Gatco graft case filed against BNP Chairperson and 17 others to May 10.
Judge Mohammad Ali Hossaine of the Special Judge Court-3 of Dhaka re-fixed the date after hearing on a plea of defendant lawyer Syed Joinal Abedin Mesba for deferring the hearing on charge framing due to the absence of Begum Khaleda Zia for her illness.
On September 2, 2007, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed the case with Tejgaon Model Police Station against 13 people, including Khaleda and her younger son late Arafat Rahman with Tejgaon Police Station on charges of misappropriating around Taka 1,000 crore while dealing with Global Agro Trade (Private) Company Limited (Gatco).
The next day, Khaleda Zia and Koko were arrested. The case was included under the Emergency Powers Act on September 18 of the same year. Later, on May 13, 2008, the anti-graft body pressed charge sheet against the BNP Chief and 23 others, inflicting 11 in the case.
Later, the names of six accused, including Khaleda’s younger son Arafat Rahman Koko, were dropped from the charge sheet after their death on different dates.
The other accused people are- ex-BNP Minister late M Shamsul Islam, former State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources late AK Mosharraf Hossen, former Minister Dr Khondoker Mosharraf Hossen, former Chattogram Port Authority (CPA) Chairman Commodore Julfikar Ali, Jahanara Akber, wife of deceased former Minister Colonel (retired) Akbar Hossain and their two sons-Ismail Hossain Saimon and AKM Musa Kazal, former Shipping Secretary Julfikar Haider Chowdhury, former CPA Member AK Rashid Uddin Ahmed, GATCO Directors Shahjahan M Hasib and Syed Tanvir Ahmed and Syed Galib Ahmed, CPA former Chairman ASM Shahadat Hossain, former Port Director (Transport) AM Sanowar Hossain and former Port Member Lutful Kabir.
