SC disposes of appeal with observations

The Supreme Court yesterday disposed of with observations an appeal filed by BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia against a High Court order that rejected her revision petition seeking its order for re-investigation into Zia Orphanage graft case against her.

A four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha passed the order after hearing the leave to appeal filed by Khaleda challenging the HC order.

The apex court observation will be known once it releases the full text of the order.

Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon, a lawyer for Khaleda, told The Daily Star that the trial court will now accept the document that money had come from Kuwait for establishing the Zia Orphanage Trust following the SC observation.

Anti-Corruption Commission's lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan told The Daily Star that there is no legal bar for the lower court concerned to continue the trial proceedings of the case against the former prime minister following the SC order.

The HC on March 9 rejected Khaleda's petition seeking its order for a fresh probe into the Zia Orphanage corruption case against her. Khaleda filed the petition with the High Court on March 1.

In the petition, she requested the HC to stay the trial proceedings of the case and to issue a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain why the lower court's rejection order should not be declared illegal.

The ACC filed the case on July 3, 2008 accusing Khaleda, her elder son Tarique Rahman and four others for misappropriating over Tk 2.10 crore that was received as grants for orphans via a foreign bank.

Of the six accused, Khaleda, former BNP lawmaker Salimul Haq Kamal and businessman Sharfuddin Ahmed are on bail while the others including Tarique have been absconding.