Bangladesh: Former-PM Khaleda Zia sentenced to seven-years prison in corruption-case
A Dhaka court on Monday sentenced former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and three others to seven years of imprisonment in the Zia Charitable Trust graft case. The court asked them to pay Tk 10 lakh each in fine and ordered that they serve an additional six months in jail by default. Zia has been serving a five-year jail term in corruption case since February.
Anti-corruption body found Zia raised funds from unknown sources
The case dates back to 2011 and pertains to Zia Charitable Trust. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), in its case statement of August 8, 2011, found that Zia and three others raised Tk 3.15 crore from unknown sources. The ACC submitted the chargesheet on January 16, 2012, and the trial began on March 19 the following year. Zia appeared before the court on December 1, 2017.
Earlier, Zia requested that proceedings be halted
Pleading innocence, Zia had approached the country's Supreme Court and requested that the proceedings be halted. But the Supreme Court rejected her plea clearing the way for the lower court to deliver its verdict. "The Appellate Division with Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain cleared the way for the court concerned to go on with the trial proceedings," a spokesman from Attorney General office said.
Zia had told her relatives she will be back
Zia's party has claimed the case is politically motivated. In February, as she was on way for the court, an emotional Zia told her relatives she would be back. "There is no need to cry. I will be alright. You all wait, I will be back. Do not worry and be strong," she told her loved ones at her Gulshan residence after offering prayers.
