Trial of the former finance minister SAMS Kibria killing case was adjourned yesterday for 10 days at the Sylhet Divisional Speedy Trial Tribunal.

Judge Biplob Goswami gave the order as the complainant filed a petition praying for four weeks' time to appeal against the rejection of a prayer for reinvestigation of the case. The court rejected the prayer for reinvestigation of the case yesterday. Advocate Abdul Majid Khan, complainant of the case, and others filed the petition on May 3.

The trial started on February 7 and was stayed by the High Court (HC) on the same day after a reinvestigation appeal. The trial remained suspended as the case records were sent to the HC.

The complainant appealed to the appellate division as an HC division bench rejected the prayer. The appellate division upheld the decision on March 22 and ordered the concerned authorities to send the records back to the trial court. The case records reached Sylhet on April 19 when the court fixed May 3 and yesterday for recording of deposition of the witnesses. There are 66 people named as prosecution witnesses in the charge sheet.

Eight out of 10 accused were also produced before the court yesterday and on May 3. The accused are Vicepresident of Habiganj BNP and chief of Zia Smriti O Gobeshona Parishad AKM Abdul Quaiyum, Joynal Abedin Jalal, Zamir Ali, Joynal Abedin Momin, Tajul Islam, Shahed Ali, Selim Ahmed and Ayat Ali. The two other accused, Muhibur Rahman and Kajol Miah, have been at large since the gruesome killing.

Five people including the Awami League (AL) stalwart SAMS Kibria, his nephew AL leader Shah Monjurul Huda were killed in a grenade attack on January 27, 2005 at a public meeting in Baidderbazar in Habiganj district. The three others killed are Md Siddique Ali, 50, Abdur Rahim, 45 and Abdul Hossain, 50.

Advocate Abdul Majid Khan filed two cases with the Habiganj Police Station on the next day. The case was first investigated by the officer-in-charge of the Habiganj Police Station. Later it was transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Munshi Atiqur Rahman was made the investigation officer (IO), who submitted the charge sheet to the court on March 20, 2005.