Courtesy New Age 13/11/09
The government on Thursday decided to withdraw 293 more 'politically-motivated cases' mostly against members of the ruling Awami League.
The decision came at the ninth meeting of the national review committee on withdrawal of politically-motivated cases at the home affairs ministry with state minister for law Quamrul Islam in the chair.
The meeting did not recommend withdrawal of any such cases against leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led alliance.
'A total of 293 cases out of 659 placed at the meeting have been recommended for withdrawal. Of them, 21 cases were filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission and the rest 272 were under the penal code.' Quamrul, also the head of the review committee, told reporters after the meeting.
He said the committee did not receive any appeals from the BNP-led four party alliance for review on the day.
Replying to a query, the head of the review committee said the government would also consider withdrawal of harassment cases against the leaders and activists of the BNP-led alliance.
'We may get appeals from some leaders of the opposition party for withdrawal in the coming meeting. We will recommend for quashing the cases against the opposition leaders also if those are found to have been filed for harassments,' he added.
The committee has so far recommended withdrawal of a total of 1,183 cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission and under the Bangladesh Penal Code, mostly against AL leaders and activists and only two filed against the BNP leaders.
The meeting recommended quashing of cases against Khulna mayor Talukder Abdul Khaleque, Kamal Ahmed Majumder, Haji Selim, Salman F Rahman, Mizanul Haque, Manikganj municipality mayor Ramzan Ali and Tongi municipality mayor Azmat Ullah among others.
The committee at the previous meeting on October 13 recommended dropping 297 cases filed with political intension including one against senior joint secretary general of BNP and former premier Khaleda Zia's eldest son Tarique Rahman.
Earlier the sixth meeting had decided to drop a liquor case against BNP's central leader and former law minister Moudud Ahmed.
The committee is reviewing the 'harassment cases' filed during the tenures of the BNP-led alliance government (2001-06) and the immediate past interim administration of Fakhruddin (2007-08).
BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia and her two sons—Tarique Rahman and Arafat Rahman—filed applications on April 30 seeking withdrawal of all 20 cases lodged against them during the interim government's rule.
The government on February 17 set up the inter-ministry committee to review the 'politically motivated' cases, especially those filed against politicians, during the regimes of the BNP-led alliance government and the interim administration.
The national committee has so far received 5,132 cases recommended for withdrawal by the district committees from across the country.
The ultimate fate of the ACC cases recommended for withdrawal was depending on the Anti-Corruption Commission, Quamrul said, adding that the recommendations were sent to the ACC and also to the courts concerned for their considerations.
He said the review committee would conclude its job by January 2010.
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