Zia charitable graft case: State, ACC challenge Khaleda’s acquittal

The state and the Anti-Corruption Commission have filed two separate appeals with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court challenging the High Court verdict that acquitted BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia from the Zia Charitable Trust corruption case.

In the petitions, they prayed to the apex court to stay the HC verdict, saying that they would move separate appeals before this court against the HC judgement.

The ACC submitted the leave to appeal petition yesterday, and the state filed its petition earlier this month.

Yesterday, the Appellate Division said that both the petitions would be included in the cause list for hearing on March 2, according to a three-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Justice Md Ashfaqul Islam.

Counsel for the state and ACC did not reveal details of the grounds of the leave to appeal petitions.

Additional Attorney General Aneek R Haque and Advocate Ashif Hassan represented the state and the ACC, respectively during yesterday's proceedings.

On November 27 last year, the HC acquitted Khaleda in the Zia Charitable Trust graft case in which she was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment by a lower court.

The HC also scrapped the trial court verdict that sentenced the BNP chief and two others in the case.

On October 29, 2018, a Dhaka court convicted Khaleda and sentenced her to seven years of imprisonment in the case.

The ACC filed the case with Tejgaon Police Station on August 8, 2011, accusing Khaleda and three others of abusing power to raise funds for the trust from unknown sources.