The High Court did not apply its judicial mind at all while acquitting incumbent Relief and Disaster Management Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya of graft charges, the Supreme Court has observed in its verdict. The full verdict of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court quashing a High Court order that acquitted Maya of graft charges was published on Wednesday.A three-member Appellate Division bench, headed by Chief Justice SK Sinha, passed the order on June 14. It also asked the High Court to rehear the appeal filed by the minister with it challenging a lower court judgment which had jailed him for 13 years in 2007.In 2007, the ACC filed the case against the senior Awami League leader with Sutrapur Police Station accusing him of amassing wealth beyond known source of income and concealing information about his wealth worth Tk 29 lakh. On February 24, 2008, a lower court sentenced him to 13 years’ jail in connection with the case and asked the authorities concerned to confiscate his wealth worth Tk 5 crore.Maya filed an appeal with the High Court. On October 27, 2010, the High Court cleared him of the graft charges. Later, the ACC filed an appeal against the High Court order to the Appellate Division. ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan said he personally thinks that Maya should not continue as a member of parliament as per the section 66/2(Ga) of the constitution as the offence is tantamount to moral degradation. “This is a public interest matter. There should be a debate in parliament in this regard,” he said.In its observation, the Supreme Court said the High Court acquitted Maya of the charges on the grounds that he was not issued any notice as per the law. “The High Court didn’t evaluate the evidence and witnesses although the special trail court jailed Maya on the basis of evidence and witnesses.”It also said, the ACC needs not to issue any notice for the trial of any person Under Sections 26 and 27 of the ACC Act 2004.
