HC bail order stayed, Omar asked to surrender before trial court
Friday, 24 April 2009
The Supreme Court (SC) Thursday stayed the High Court (HC) orders granting interim bail to fugitive graft-convict former State Minister for Law Barrister Shahjahan Omar of BNP, thereby apparently sealing the fate of other fugitive bigwigs convicted of corruption during the past purge, reports UNB.
In its orders of cascading impacts, the highest court asked him to surrender before the trial court in two weeks.
On January 14, the High Court granted bail for three months to Shahjahan Omar as he surrendered to it by dodging regular trial-court process.
A four-member Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice MM Ruhul Amin passed the order, while granting the leave-to-appeal petition filed by the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) against the High Court orders.
Emerging from the court, ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan said that the apex court reestablished that a fugitive- convict 'does not have any locus standi to move before the High Court for seeking bail on surrender without exhausting the trial-court process'.
On May 14 last year, a special court dealing with high-profile corruption cases during the past caretaker government's rule sentenced Shahjahan to 13 years' imprisonment for amassing wealth illegally and hiding information about it to the ACC and fined him Tk 1.0 million.
He was tried in absentia, as he and many other high-profile persons were on the run, reportedly abroad, amid a crackdown on graft suspects following the 1/11 political changeover.
Legal experts say, now the hearings before the third HC bench on the unsolved petitions of some bigwig fugitive convicts trying for bail on surrender to the High Court, by dodging the trial courts, could go the same way if they contest.
The third bench was constituted for disposal of the bail petitions as a High Court division bench had earlier delivered split orders over it.
The third bench of Justice M Imman Ali, who was scheduled to hear the petitions Wednesday, put off the proceedings on a plea moved by the ACC lawyer intimating that the Appellate Division would dispose of a petition on a similar bail-dispute Thursday.
Over a dozen runaways, most of them convicted of graft and have arrest warrants hanging overhead, are in an anxious wait for the third-bench order.
Among them are former Communications Minister and JP Chairman Anwar Hossain Manju and his wife Tasmeema Hossain, ex-state minister Mofazzel Hossain Chowdhury Maya of Awami League, ex-AL lawmakers Abul Hasnat Abdullah, Moqbul Hossain, Joynal Hazari, Haji Mohammad Salim, Mohiuddin Ahmed, and Mustafa Rashidi Suza and his wife, ex-BNP lawmakers Nadim Mostafa and Rashiduzzaman Millat, ex-power secretary Nurul Islam and Mafruza Ibrahim, wife of ex-BNP lawmaker Hafiz Ibrahim.
Advocate MA Aziz Khan appeared for the ACC while Barrister Rafique-ul Huq for convict Barrister Shajahan Omar who was in the courtroom wearing the trademark black gown.
In its orders of cascading impacts, the highest court asked him to surrender before the trial court in two weeks.
On January 14, the High Court granted bail for three months to Shahjahan Omar as he surrendered to it by dodging regular trial-court process.
A four-member Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice MM Ruhul Amin passed the order, while granting the leave-to-appeal petition filed by the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) against the High Court orders.
Emerging from the court, ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan said that the apex court reestablished that a fugitive- convict 'does not have any locus standi to move before the High Court for seeking bail on surrender without exhausting the trial-court process'.
On May 14 last year, a special court dealing with high-profile corruption cases during the past caretaker government's rule sentenced Shahjahan to 13 years' imprisonment for amassing wealth illegally and hiding information about it to the ACC and fined him Tk 1.0 million.
He was tried in absentia, as he and many other high-profile persons were on the run, reportedly abroad, amid a crackdown on graft suspects following the 1/11 political changeover.
Legal experts say, now the hearings before the third HC bench on the unsolved petitions of some bigwig fugitive convicts trying for bail on surrender to the High Court, by dodging the trial courts, could go the same way if they contest.
The third bench was constituted for disposal of the bail petitions as a High Court division bench had earlier delivered split orders over it.
The third bench of Justice M Imman Ali, who was scheduled to hear the petitions Wednesday, put off the proceedings on a plea moved by the ACC lawyer intimating that the Appellate Division would dispose of a petition on a similar bail-dispute Thursday.
Over a dozen runaways, most of them convicted of graft and have arrest warrants hanging overhead, are in an anxious wait for the third-bench order.
Among them are former Communications Minister and JP Chairman Anwar Hossain Manju and his wife Tasmeema Hossain, ex-state minister Mofazzel Hossain Chowdhury Maya of Awami League, ex-AL lawmakers Abul Hasnat Abdullah, Moqbul Hossain, Joynal Hazari, Haji Mohammad Salim, Mohiuddin Ahmed, and Mustafa Rashidi Suza and his wife, ex-BNP lawmakers Nadim Mostafa and Rashiduzzaman Millat, ex-power secretary Nurul Islam and Mafruza Ibrahim, wife of ex-BNP lawmaker Hafiz Ibrahim.
Advocate MA Aziz Khan appeared for the ACC while Barrister Rafique-ul Huq for convict Barrister Shajahan Omar who was in the courtroom wearing the trademark black gown.