Hasina’s bail in extortion case rejected
Courtesy New Age 6/10/08
The High court on Monday summarily rejected the petition filed by Awami League’s president and former prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, seeking bail in the Tk 5 crore extortion case filed by businessman Noor Ali.
The High Court vacation bench of Justice Sheikh Rezwan Ali and Justice M Rais Uddin pronounced the 90-minute verdict, putting in limbo the release of Hasina on bail.
Hasina’s counsel Rafique-ul Huq told reporters that he would appeal against the High Court’s verdict to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court. The process of appeal, however, will not begin until the Supreme Court’s vacation ends on October 12, and the procedure of appeal disposal is usually a time-consuming matter.
Hasina, one of the top politicians was arrested last year amid a crackdown on the politicians after the proclamation of the state of emergency on January 11, 2007. Another former premier, Khaleda Zia, also the BNP chairperson and Hasina’s bitterest rival, has been set free on bail in all the graft cases filed against her during the purge.
In the ruling, the High Court observed that there was no urgency in granting bail to Hasina as the bail was sought on medical grounds and she was freed by an executive order for medical treatment abroad.
As she has already been allowed to go to the
‘Sheikh Hasina’s appearance in the court is imperative for seeking bail on medical grounds,’ said the court, observing that she could not get bail in absentia.
Although bail was sought on medical grounds, Hasina’s counsel also argued that she should be granted bail in order to ensure participation of all political parties in the upcoming national elections, scheduled for December 18. The government should ensure a level playing field for all by giving her bail, he asserted.
Dismissing the argument, the court said that ‘a political view’ could not be considered for granting bail to any accused person.
Apparently disappointed, Fazle Noor Tapas told reporters that they would move to the chamber judge of the Supreme Court for provisional petition, seeking permission to appeal against the High Court’s ruling.
During the current annual vacation of the Supreme Court that will last until October 12, the chamber court will sit for only one day on October 6. As such, the appeal process and disposal may take a long time.
The Unique Group’s managing director, Noor Ali, lodged a case with the Tejgaon police station on June 13, 2007, accusing Hasina, her cousin Sheikh Helal and his wife Rupa Chowdhury of extorting Tk 5 crore from him.
The three were accused of taking Tk 5 crore for helping Ali’s firm to win a contract from the Power Development Board in 1997.
The army-led joint forces arrested Hasina at Sudha Sadan, her residence, on July 16, 2007, and sent her to jail the same day, showing her arrested in a Tk 2.99 crore ‘extortion’ case filed by businessman Azam J Chowdhury with the Gulshan police station on June 13, 2007.
She was later shown arrested in the extortion case filed by Noor Ali.
The High Court vacation bench of Justice Mirza Hussain Haider and Justice Mamnoon Rahman on September 16 granted bail to Hasina in the Azam case, now under trial at a Special Judge’s Court set up in the Jatiya Sangsad complex. The court also stayed, till October 19, the proceedings of the case.
Hasina’s two other bail petitions for the Niko and barge-mounted power-plant graft cases were filed on Monday with a High Court bench of Justice M Anwarul Haque and Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury.
The petitions may come up on the list of the cases to be heard by the bench today.
On September 23 another High Court bench of Justice AKM Fazlur Rahman and Justice Sheikh Abdul Awal accepted the petitions for hearing, but returned them as the bench has no jurisdiction to hear them.
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