The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court yesterday cleared the way for the lower court concerned to resume the trial proceedings of Niko corruption case against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia. In response to an appeal filed by the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC), a three-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha scrapped a High Court order that had stayed the trial proceedings of the case.
The apex court also disposed of a rule issued by the High Court asking the authorities concerned to explain why it should not declare illegal the case proceedings against the BNP chief.
“There is no legal bar in continuing the trial proceedings against BNP chief at the trial court following the apex court order,” Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) counsel advocate Khurshid Alam Khan said.
The ACC filed the case against five, including Khaleda, with Tejgaon Police Station on December 9, 2007 on charge of abusing power to ink a deal with Canadian company Niko for exploring and extracting gas.
Former Law Minister Moudud Ahmed, former State Minister for Energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain, former acting Energy Secretary Khandaker Shahidul Islam, and Vice-President (South Asia) of Niko Resources Bangladesh
Ltd Kashem Sharif were the others accused in the case.
The ACC on May 5, 2008, submitted a charge-sheet in the case against 11 people including Khaleda Zia. Accepting a petition filed by Khaleda, the HC on July 9, 2008, stayed the case proceedings and issued the rule.
The High Court on June 18, 2015, passed an order, paving the way for continuing the graft case against the BNP leader in the trial court.
The court had also asked the BNP chief to surrender before the concerned trial court within two months.
But following a fresh petition of Khaleda Zia, the High Court on March 7, 2017, again stayed the proceedings of the case and issued the rule. Barrister Moudud Ahmed and Advocate AJ Mohammad Ali appeared for Khaleda Zia during yesterday’s proceedings.