Niko graft case: HC to hear Khaleda’s plea over indictment on May 30

The High Court on Tuesday fixed May 30 for 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 Anti-Corruption Commission's (ACC) lawyer Titus Hillol Rema sought time from the court for hearing on the petition.

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.

Meanwhile, a Dhaka court on Tuesday started the trial of the Niko graft case with the deposition of the complainant.

Earlier on March 19, 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 had 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 the Prime Minister between 2001 and 2006.

A charge sheet was submitted to the court against 11 persons on May 5 in 2008 in the case. Allegation of causing a financial loss of about Tk 137.77 billion to the state was brought in the charge sheet.

On March 19, Khaleda, now on bail in this case, pleaded not guilty through her lawyer Masud Ahmed Talukder and demanded justice.

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