Bangladesh News

A Dhaka court yesterday rejected the petition seeking stay on the proceedings of the Tk 1-crore extortion case filed against BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Tarique Rahman and his close aide Mian Nuruddin Apu.
Judge Momin Ullah of the Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court passed the order following a criminal revision filed by Tarique’s counsels against the earlier rejection order of the lower court.

On March 29, Metropolitan Magistrate Abdur Rouf Khan of the Speedy Trial Court-2 rejected a petition filed by Tarique’s lawyers challenging the legality of the investigation officer (IO) of the case submitting the charge sheet of the case.

Moving for the revision seeking stay on the proceedings of the case, advocate ABM Sharfuddin Khan Mukul argued that the submission of the charge sheet by the IO was illegal as per provision of the Speedy Trial Act 2000.

The act says that if any person is caught red-handed under the act, the IO has to submit the charge sheet against him or her within seven days from the day the “offence” was committed.

The case was filed on March 8 even though the “offence” took place on January 4. So, the process of submitting the charge sheet violated the provision of the act.

As the IO did not follow the provisions of the act in submitting the charge sheet, they had earlier submitted a petition to the lower court challenging the legality of the IO’s submitting the charge sheet but the lower court had rejected it, the lawyer added.

The lower court also fixed tomorrow for hearing on charge framing against Tarique and Apu of the case.

On March 18, the IO submitted the charge sheet against Tarique and Apu before the Court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) showing 12 people as prosecution witnesses.

The joint forces arrested Tarique at his mother former prime minister Khaleda Zia’s cantonment home on March 8.

Later, he was taken on a four-day remand for interrogation to find out the vital clues about the extortion case.

He is now serving a month’s detention in Dhaka Central Jail.

Tarique was also shown arrested in connection with the Tk 81 lakh extortion case filed with Gulshan Police Station on March 27.