Khaleda to face court in afternoon

 

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia will appear before a Dhaka court on Tuesday afternoon in connection with the Zia Charitable Trust graft case, her counsel confirmed.
Khaleda will appear before the court at 2:00pm as the court is scheduled to deliver an order on whether it would take into cognisance the charges brought against Khaleda and three others in the case, said Masud Ahmed Talukdar, one of the counsels of Khaleda.
Khaleda also the leader of the opposition in parliament on January 6 (Sunday) ducked appearing before a court in the case for the 10th time citing security concerns during hartal enforced by the BNP-led 18-party alliance.
Khaleda's counsel Mahbub Uddin Khokon submitted a petition and sought adjournment of the hearing, saying his client could not appear before it due to security concerns during the hartal.
The court later asked Khaleda for the 11th time to appear before it on today (January 15) in connection with the case.
The court also extended to January 15 the bail to two other accused in the case -- Ziaul Islam Munna, assistant private secretary of BNP leader Harris Chowdhury; and Monirul Islam Khan, APS of former Dhaka city mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka.
On January 1, the court asked Khaleda to appear before it on January 6.
Khaleda skipped the hearings on March 18, April 29, May 31, July 1, August 5, August 28, October 1 and November 27 last year and January 1 this year.
She last appeared in the court on February 2, 2012 only to secure permanent bail in the case.