HC to hear Khaleda Zia's petition today
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
The High Court (HC) Monday set October 14 (Tuesday) to hear the petition filed by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia challenging the legal basis of lodging the Boropukuria coal mine graft case as well as submitting the charge-sheet against her and others, reports BSS.
The petition was filed Sunday, sought quashment of the charge, saying the legal procedure was not followed in lodging the case as well as filing the charge-sheet against the accused.
A division bench comprising Justice Syed AB Mahmudul Haque and Justice Mainul Islam Chowdhury fixed the date when Khaleda Zia's counsel Barrister Rafiq-ul-Haque moved the petition for hearing.
The ACC lodged the case with Shahbagh thana here on February 26 against the ex-premier and 15 others.
Besides Khaleda Zia, nine former ministers of her cabinet, five government officials and a businessman were also made accused in the case.
They were accused of appointing a contractor in connivance with each other in exploration, management and extraction in the Barapukuria coal mine without following legal procedures.
The ACC submitted charge-sheet to the court on October 5 accusing all of them where it was alleged that the accused awarded the contract to China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation (CMC) causing a loss of almost Tk 1.59 billion (159 crore) to the public exchequer.
On August 28 last, a High Court division bench granted four months' ad interim anticipatory bail to Khaleda Zia, also Chairperson of BNP, in the Boropukuria coal mine graft case.
The petition was filed Sunday, sought quashment of the charge, saying the legal procedure was not followed in lodging the case as well as filing the charge-sheet against the accused.
A division bench comprising Justice Syed AB Mahmudul Haque and Justice Mainul Islam Chowdhury fixed the date when Khaleda Zia's counsel Barrister Rafiq-ul-Haque moved the petition for hearing.
The ACC lodged the case with Shahbagh thana here on February 26 against the ex-premier and 15 others.
Besides Khaleda Zia, nine former ministers of her cabinet, five government officials and a businessman were also made accused in the case.
They were accused of appointing a contractor in connivance with each other in exploration, management and extraction in the Barapukuria coal mine without following legal procedures.
The ACC submitted charge-sheet to the court on October 5 accusing all of them where it was alleged that the accused awarded the contract to China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation (CMC) causing a loss of almost Tk 1.59 billion (159 crore) to the public exchequer.
On August 28 last, a High Court division bench granted four months' ad interim anticipatory bail to Khaleda Zia, also Chairperson of BNP, in the Boropukuria coal mine graft case.