Ershad cleared of gold smuggling charges

A Dhaka court Tuesday cleared former president HM Ershad of charges in the Gold Smuggling Case. First additional sessions judge Md Abul Bashar handed down the verdict, which had been deferred several times earlier. "I have got justice," Ershad, chief of Jatiya Party, told bdnews24.com in his instant reaction. Ershad's lawyer Sheikh Sirajul Islam said: "The verdict has proved that the judiciary works independently." "The then BNP government filed the case with a political motive. The eight witnesses on behalf of the state could not say anything about Ershad's involvement in the case," he added.