Staff Reporter :
The High Court (HC) on Monday permitted the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to become a party in the writ petition filed by BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia challenging the government notification that said Niko case trial against her will be held at a new courtroom in Keraniganj Central Jail.
The HC bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Md Khairul Alam passed the order after hearing a petition filed by the ACC in this regard.
The bench also fixed today (Tuesday) for holding hearing on the writ petition.
ACC’s lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan told the reporters that the commission got a scope to place arguments against the writ petition of Khaleda Zia following the HC order.
On May 12, the Law Ministry issued the gazette notification, saying that trials of 17 criminal cases, including the Niko, against Khaleda Zia would be held at a special court set up at building-2 of Keraniganj Central Jail for security reasons.
Advocate A J Mohammad Ali, Barrister A M Mahbub Uddin Khokan and Barrister Kayser Kamal appeared in the hearing on behalf of Khaleda Zia, while Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan stood for the ACC.
In the hearing, Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan said, “The ACC has not been depicted in the case though the case was filed on charge of corruption.”
Then Advocate A J Mohammad Ali said, “We did not challenge the case, we filed a writ petition challenging the legality of the government notification that said Niko case trial against Khaleda will be held at a new courtroom in Keraniganj Central Jail.”
Hearing the parties, the court said, “Let the Anti-Corruption Commission to become a party in the case and come tomorrow (Tuesday) for hearing.”
On May 26, 2019, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the legality of the government notification, which says Niko case trial against her will be held at a special court inside Keraniganj Central Jail instead of a Dhaka court.
Citing the petition, Barrister Kayser Kamal, a lawyer for Khaleda Zia, told the reporters that the gazette notification issued by the Law Ministry transferring the court for holding trial of Niko case is contradictory to the relevant provision of the Constitution and the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
The trial in the Niko graft case was being held at a special court set up inside the Old Dhaka Central Jail and the trials of the 16 other cases were taking place at a makeshift court at the Government Alia Madrasa in the capital’s Bakshibazar.
Khaleda Zia landed in jail on February 8 last year after a Dhaka court sentenced her to five years imprisonment in Zia Orphanage Trust case. The High Court on October 30 last year enhanced the punishment of Khaleda Zia to 10 years imprisonment in this case.
Besides, a Dhaka court on October 29 last year convicted Khaleda Zia and sentenced her to seven years’ imprisonment in the Zia Charitable Trust corruption case.
