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Download PDF A special court yesterday started trial of the barge-mounted power plant graft case against former premier Sheikh Hasina and seven others with deposition of plaintiff Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) Deputy Director SM Sabbir Hasan.
As Hasina’s counsels started cross-examining the plaintiff, Judge Firoz Alam of the Special Court-1 set up on the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban premises adjourned the proceedings at 12:25pm and fixed Thursday (today) morning for further proceedings.
Earlier yesterday, Sabbir submitted his statement for more than one and a half hours and identified Hasina and former power secretary Dr Toufiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury as the accused after they were hauled before the court at 10:10am.
During cross-examination, Hasina’s counsel advocate Yusuf Hossain Humayun asked Sabbir whether he has done right by writing “Morhum” [late] Sheikh Mujibur Rahman” as her father in the first information report (FIR) when the president, chief the adviser and the army chief address him as country’s founder Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
In response, Sabbir said since Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was an honourable person, he did not write “Bangabandhu” before the name of the father of an accused.
Advocate Yusuf Hossain Humayun asked Sabbir whether he has done right by writing words like “fondi fikir” (tricks), “suchintito koushal” (pre-planned strategy) and “motlob” (ill motive) in the FIR against a former prime minister.
In reply, Sabbir said he believes he has done the right thing.
He told the court Hasina and other accused through mutual understanding and use of influence helped Wartsila Power Development Ltd Consortium and its two local partners win a deal for setting up a barge-mounted 100MW power plant in Khulna depriving the lowest bidder. Summit Group and United Group are the local partners of Wartsila.
He submitted that a few days before and after the deal, the three companies paid a Tk 3 crore kickback, which was spent for buying a house with a piece of land in Dhanmondi for Bangabandhu Memorial Trust set up and controlled by Hasina.
The former prime minister received the kickback from the three companies from October 7 to November 24, 1997 in exchange for permission to set up the power plant, he added.
Hasina’s lawyers advocates Yusuf Hossain Humayun, Shahara Khatun and Kamrul Islam later told newspersons the plaintiff’s statement was “false and fabricated” and there were no specific evidence, documents or papers supporting the allegations.
They said they would be able to prove the case “false and fabricated”.
In reply to a question, they said Hasina has urged all to remain united in this “moment of crisis”.
Prosecution lawyer advocate Sahidul Islam Sardar told the newspersons the court has started deposition of witnesses in the case and will continue tomorrow. The plaintiff has clearly submitted his statement to the court, he added.
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