Staff Reporter :
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC) on Sunday set aside a High Court (HC) order of directing the trial court to record statements of 26 prosecution witnesses in the radar purchase case against former President and Jatiya Party Chairman Hussain Muhammad Ershad and three others.
A four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by the Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha passed the order after hearing a leave to appeal filed by former BAF Chief
of Staff Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Sultan Mahmud, one of the accused, against HC order.
On November 24 in 2016, a HC bench ordered the trial court to record statements of 26 prosecution witnesses in the case. The HC bench also directed the trial court to conclude trial proceedings of radar purchase case by March 31.
Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Sultan Mahmud filed a petition seeking stay on the HC order. Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division sent the matter to the regular bench for hearing. The matter came to the list yesterday.
Advocate Shamsuddin Babul represented in the court on behalf of the petitioner while Advocate Khurshed Alam Khan stood for the ACC.
Khurshed Alam Khan told the reporters that the Appellate Division set aside the whole HC order of directing the trial court to record statements of 26 prosecution witnesses in the radar purchase case. Now the case will start from argument hearing level.
Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan said that the special court so far recorded statements of 12 out of 38 witnesses in the case, and started hearing on arguments without recording testimony of the remaining 26 witnesses.
A Special Court on November 8, rejected ACC’s appeal to record statements of 26 witnesses. ACC then filed a revision petition with the High Court against special court order, praying to direct the lower court to record the statements of the rest witnesses in the case, the ACC lawyer added.
The now-defunct Bureau of Anti-Corruption (BAC) filed the case against Ershad and three others with Cantonment PS on May 4, 1992. Abdus Sattar Sarkar, a former BAC official, pressed charges against them on October 27, 1994.
According to the case statement, Ershad in collusion with others had allegedly caused a loss of Tk 64.04 crore to the State Exchequer by purchasing radars from the USA instead of France for the Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) when he was in power.
On August 12, 1995, the trial court framed charges against Ershad and three others namely former BAF Chiefs Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Sultan Mahmud and Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed and Director of United Traders Ltd. A K M Musa. Of them, Musa has been absconding since the case was filed.
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC) on Sunday set aside a High Court (HC) order of directing the trial court to record statements of 26 prosecution witnesses in the radar purchase case against former President and Jatiya Party Chairman Hussain Muhammad Ershad and three others.
A four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by the Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha passed the order after hearing a leave to appeal filed by former BAF Chief
of Staff Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Sultan Mahmud, one of the accused, against HC order.
On November 24 in 2016, a HC bench ordered the trial court to record statements of 26 prosecution witnesses in the case. The HC bench also directed the trial court to conclude trial proceedings of radar purchase case by March 31.
Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Sultan Mahmud filed a petition seeking stay on the HC order. Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division sent the matter to the regular bench for hearing. The matter came to the list yesterday.
Advocate Shamsuddin Babul represented in the court on behalf of the petitioner while Advocate Khurshed Alam Khan stood for the ACC.
Khurshed Alam Khan told the reporters that the Appellate Division set aside the whole HC order of directing the trial court to record statements of 26 prosecution witnesses in the radar purchase case. Now the case will start from argument hearing level.
Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan said that the special court so far recorded statements of 12 out of 38 witnesses in the case, and started hearing on arguments without recording testimony of the remaining 26 witnesses.
A Special Court on November 8, rejected ACC’s appeal to record statements of 26 witnesses. ACC then filed a revision petition with the High Court against special court order, praying to direct the lower court to record the statements of the rest witnesses in the case, the ACC lawyer added.
The now-defunct Bureau of Anti-Corruption (BAC) filed the case against Ershad and three others with Cantonment PS on May 4, 1992. Abdus Sattar Sarkar, a former BAC official, pressed charges against them on October 27, 1994.
According to the case statement, Ershad in collusion with others had allegedly caused a loss of Tk 64.04 crore to the State Exchequer by purchasing radars from the USA instead of France for the Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) when he was in power.
On August 12, 1995, the trial court framed charges against Ershad and three others namely former BAF Chiefs Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Sultan Mahmud and Air Vice-Marshal (retd) Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed and Director of United Traders Ltd. A K M Musa. Of them, Musa has been absconding since the case was filed.
