News Desk : dhakamirror.com
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Wednesday acquitted Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson Khaleda Zia, her son and the party acting chairman Tarique Rahman, and four others in the Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Orphanage Trust case, overturning the High Court’s decision that upheld their convictions.
The court also declared the proceedings against them as a ‘malicious prosecution.’
A five-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed, delivered the landmark verdict after hearing separate appeals filed by Khaleda and two others challenging the earlier rulings.
The High Court, on October 30, 2018, increased Khaleda Zia’s prison sentence from five to 10 years following a petition by the Anti-Corruption Commission.
This followed the February 8, 2018 judgment by a Dhaka Special Judge’s Court, which sentenced Khaleda to five years in prison and jailed Tarique Rahman and others for 10 years for allegedly embezzling Tk 2.10 crore from the orphanage trust.
However, during the hearing, ACC counsel Asif Hasan admitted before the Appellate Division that no evidence of fund misappropriation was found. He informed the court that the Tk 2.10 crore, along with accrued interest, remained intact in the trust’s account.
The case, filed in 2008 during a military-backed caretaker government, accused Khaleda of abusing her position as prime minister from 1991 to 1996 to misappropriate Tk 2.10 crore from a total donation of Tk 4.44 crore made by the Saudi king to the orphanage trust.
The acquittal marks a significant legal and political development, clearing Khaleda and Tarique of charges that have loomed over them for over 15 years.
The Appellate Division in the verdict has unanimously allowed all appeals in the Zia Orphanage Trust case, acquitting Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman, and others.
The verdicts of both the High Court and the trial court have been set aside, clearing all appellants of the charges.
All appellants were found not guilty, with the court declaring no evidence to support the charges leveled against them.
The proceedings were described as a ‘contrived misapplication of the law,’ amounting to a deliberate misuse of legal processes.
The judgment extends to other convicted individuals who did not file appeals, ensuring their acquittal and restoration of dignity.
The decision restores the innocence of the appellants and all other convicts, putting an end to the ‘unwarranted’ legal proceedings against them.
All appellants on bail are discharged from their respective bail bonds. The court directed that the order be communicated immediately.
– Input from New Age was used in this article.
