SC declares Zubaida Rahman a fugitive

The Supreme Court in a full text of a verdict declared Dr Zubaida Rahman, wife of BNP's acting chairman Tarique Rahman, a fugitive in the eye of law.

The SC also observed that the concerned High Court bench overstepped its jurisdiction by illegally entertaining and hearing her petition as she filed it without surrendering to the trial court concerned in connection with a corruption case. 

A four-member bench of the Appellate Division of the SC headed by Chief Justice Hasan Foez Siddique made the observations in the 16-page verdict which was released today (June 1, 2022).

Earlier on April 13 this year, the four-member bench of apex court upheld a High Court verdict that in 2017 had cleared the way for the lower court to resume trial proceedings of the corruption case against Zubaida Rahman.

On the same day, the bench of the Appellate Division dismissed an appeal filed by Zubaida Rahman challenging the HC verdict.

On September 26, 2008, the ACC filed the case with Kafrul Police Station against Tarique Rahman, who is now in London, his wife Zubaida, and her mother Iqbal Mand Banu for amassing assets through illegal means and concealing information in their wealth statement.

 "… We are of the view that the petitioner was a fugitive in the eye of law when she filed the application under section 561A of the Code of Criminal Procedure," observed the SC in its full text verdict.

Barrister Kayser Kamal, a lawyer for Zubaida, told this correspondent that his client has been living in London for a long period of time.

He could not say anything about the apex court's full text verdict and its observation on her leave to appeal petition.