DHAKA, Oct 19, 2017 (BSS) – A special court here today granted bail to BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia as she surrendered on return home more than a week after it issued an arrest warrant for skipping a scheduled appearance to face a graft charge.
“The bail was granted on conditions that she would inform the court before leaving the country in future,” an official of the court told newsmen adding the BNP chief also had to give a bond of Taka one-lakh for obtaining the order.
Begum Zia surrendered before the court a day after she returned home from London after a three-month visit and obtained the bail in Zia Orphanage and Zia Charitable Trust graft cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
Court officials and lawyers said she appeared on the dock and sought the bail this morning at the makeshift court set up on Alia Madrasha ground at Bakshibazar in the old city.
After granting the bail the court held the routine hearing when she gave a one-hour statement claiming her innocence in the graft cases while the judge fixed October 26 for the next hearing.
“She also claimed that cases filed against her are false, motivated and imaginarily made up and aimed at harassing her,” a defense lawyer said adding she was allowed to speak as the court accepted a petition of hers for giving the statement in self defence.
The court on Nov 10 simultaneously issued arrest warrants against two others, former BNP lawmaker Kazi Salimul Haque Kamal and businessman Sharfuddin Ahmed along with the BNP chief but the judge rejected their bail petitions.
Khaleda Zia has been facing six arrest warrants in different cases, four with different Dhaka courts, two of them trying her for graft charges related to Zia Orphanage Trust and Zia Charitable Trust.
Of the rests, two were for allegedly undermining the country’s map and the national flag and celebrating her “false birthday” on August 15 every year and the others over hartal violence in February 2015 while the last cases are being tried by courts in Comilla.