& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Bigwigs' trials linger for slow investigation

SHAKHAWAT Liton and CHAITANYA Chandra Halder
Trials of many corruption and extortion cases filed against detained political bigwigs could not be started in about a year as their investigations have been lingering.
Cases filed against the interned political leaders were brought under the emergency power rules (EPR) for quick adjudication, by curtailing the rights to seek bail, but the snail pace of investigation has been delaying submission of charge sheets, which is a prerequisite for trials.
Many detained political heavies including former prime minister Khaleda Zia, former minister also Awami League (AL) General Secretary Abdul Jalil, Senior Joint Secretary General of BNPTarique Rahman, former parliamentary affairs adviser to a prime minister Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, Member of the Advisory Council of AL Salman F Rahman, and former BNP minister Altaf Hossain Chowhdury have been in custody without thids for months.
The highest number of cases was filed against Tariqiic Rahman, the man who had allegedly been at the centre of the rampant corruption that had permeated every sphere of the society in the five years of the immediate past regime of BNP Jamaat led four-party alliance government.
Although he reportedly controlled every aspect of the state and the government ranging from the civil administration to political agenda, from BNP's political office Hawa Bhaban in the capital, he is yet to face trial in any of the cases, despite being detained for over a year now.
Several other politicians however were convicted through trials while the trials of some oilier big fishes of politics, including detained former prime minister also AL President Sheikh Hasina, have already begun
Sources said progress in the investigation of most of the cases filed against the political leaders is not satisfactory enough for pressing charges.
In defence of the delay in submitting charge sheets in the cases, investigation officers of a number of cases said they are overloaded with work while suffering from an acute shortage of manpower and logistics.
Trial of an extortion case of Tk 3 crore against Sheikh Hasina already had begun, the fate of which became uncertain following a High Court (HC) order declaring illegal the military backed caretaker government's decision to bring the case under EPR.
The HC ruling is currently stayed, pending the Supreme Court Appellate Division's judgement on it, since the government appealed against the ruling.
Sheikh Hasina, who was detained on July 16 last year, is facing three extortion and two graft cases filed during the regime of the present caretaker government, with only an extortion case's trial already initiated while the others have been under investigation for months.
Meanwhile, three graft cases filed against former premier also BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, who was detained on September 3 of last year immediately after the Gatco scam case had been filed against her, have yet to make any headway towards trials.
The investigation officers could not-press charges in the Gatco scam case in the last eight months while two other graft cases in connection with Niko and Baropukuria coal mine scams are also still under investigation.
The investigation report in the Niko graft case against Khaleda and four others was submitted to the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) on March 13, with a proposal for indicting nine more persons.
Jamaat-e-lslami chief Motiur Rahman Nizami, its Secretary General Ali Ahsan Mojahid, and BNP leaders M Saifur Rahman, Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, MK Anwar, and M Shamsul Islam are also facing graft charges in connection with the case of Baropukuria coal mine scam filed by the ACC on February 26 this year. But they have not been detained, for reasons yet unknown.
Khaleda Zia, her sons Tarique and Koko, and Obaidul Quader were arrested by the joint forces immediately after filing of graft and extortion cases against them, while some others were also detained without specific charges.
AL Secretary General Abdul Jalil had been detained on May 28 of last year and kept in custody without any specific charge, until he was allowed to go abroad for treatment last month.
Only when the HC declared his detention illegal, the ACC filed a case against him on December 18 of last year in connection with concealing information in his wealth statement submitted to the com-mission, till now the investigation of which has not even produced an indictment.
Former law minister Moudud Ahmed, detained on April 13 last year, is facing two cases, one for possessing alcoholic liquor illegally, the proceedings of which was stayed by the HC, and another for graft, which is still under investigation.
Former health minister also BNP Standing Committee Member Dr KhandakerMosharraf Hossain, who was detained on March 7 last year, is facing a number of cases in connection with extortion and graft, trials of which arc also yet to begin.
BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Tarique Rahman, who was detained on March 8 last year, is facing as many as ten extortion cases, one graft case, and a swindling case.
In last April police pressed charges against Tarique in a case for extorting I k 1 crore, which was the first to be filed against him. But (lie HC stayed the indictment, and the case is now pending while the government also has made no move to overturn the stay order
All other cases against Tarique, who was sarcastically called the 'prince' by people quashed under the bulldozer of rampant corruption and thuggery during BNP-Jamaat rule, have been under investigation for months now.
Three extortion cases involving several crores of taka were filed with Dhanmondi police station on April 1, 3 and 19 of last year against Tarique, who was shown arrested in one of the cases on April 23.
Gaisuddin Al Mamun, a close friend and business partner of Tarique, gave confessional statements in the cases implicating his friend, in the same month those were filed.
Another three extortion cases were filed with Gulshan police station against Tarique, in which he was shown arrested on March 29, April 23, and on May 14. Mamun also gave confessional statements implicating his friend in those cases onApril5and 16,andonMay 10.
In another extortion case of Tk 10.30 crore filed with Shahbagh police station on April 9 against Tarique, again Mamun implicated his friend in a confessional statemen t given on April 23.
In a case filed against Tarique with Kafrul police station, he was shown arrested on April 13, in which also Mamun gave a confessional statement implicating his friend on April 19.
All of those cases were brought under EPR soon after filing.
In a latest development, the ACC on Monday pressed charges against Tarique, his wife Dr Zobaida Rahman and mother-in-law Iqbalmand Banu for amassing wealth illegally and concealing wealth information.
The ACC filed the graft case on September 26 last year with Kafrul Police Station. Now the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court, which received the charge sheets against them, will transfer the case to the special court for framing charges to begin the trial.
Harris Chowdhury, former political secretary to a prime minister, however was sentenced to various terms of imprisonment in absentia. On five separate charges, he was sentenced to 59 years of jail term in November of last year for swindling, corruption, and abuse of power.
Harris, also a joint secretary of BNP was sentenced to three years of imprisonment in last May for not submitting his wealth statement to the ACC. In October, he was sentenced to three years in jail for illegally possessing foreign currencies.
Another political secretary to former prime minister Khaleda Zia, Mosaddak Ali Falu, who was arrested on February 5 of last year, has not yet been convicted for any offence, despite having allegations of illegally amassing a huge amount of wealth in the past few years.
Falu, who was elected as a BNP lawmaker through a controversial by-election in Dhaka-10 constituency, is facing four cases-— three for misappropriating government relief materials, and the other for concealing information in his wealth statement submitted to the ACC.
He was indicted in all the cases, but trial of only one in connection with misappropriation of relief materials began recently. His wife Mahbuba Sultana however was convicted for tax evasion.
Arafat Rahman Koko, who was detained along with his mother Khaleda Zia in connection with Gatco scam, is now facing two cases for graft and extortion, progress in the investigation of which has been very little.
The ACC pressed charges against Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, who was detained on February 4 last year in connection with concealing information in his wealth statement. The HC stayed the case, while the government has made no move yet to overturn the stay order.
Former minister also BNP Joint Secretary General Mirza Abbas, who was detained on February 26 last year, is facing three graft cases, a money laundering case, and a tax evasion case. Trial of the money laundering case began, and charges were framed in a graft case in connection with misappropriating and selling 18 government houses, and in the tax evasion case.
Meanwhile, his wife Afroza Abbas was convicted in two cases in connection with tax evasion.
AL Advisory Council Member Salman F Rahman, who was detained on February 4 last year, is facing 10 cases — eight for swindling, one for money laundering, and another for graft. Some of the swindling cases were settled outside the court, while charges were pressed in the money laundering case, but the trial has yet to begin.
AL Presidium Member Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, who was detained on May 28 last year, is facing an extortion case as a coaccused of Hasina.
Under such circumstances, questions have been raised whether trials of the political honchos, suspected of graft and other criminal activities, will be completed in the next eight to nine months, to make it impossible for them to contest in the next parliamentary election, which is supposed to be held by the year end.
Since the caretaker government had launched anti-graft crackdown on political suspects on February 4 oflast year, a large number of political leaders and businessmen were detained and cases were filed against them.
As many as 240 people, 217 of whom have been in politics, were however convicted and sentenced to jail in connection with 61 cases.
Political leaders Dr Mahiuddin Khan Alamgir, Nazmul Huda, Mohammad Nasim, Amanullah Aman, Mir Nasiruddin, Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, Ali Asgar loby, Abul Hasnat Abdullah, Sahjahan Siraj, Ziaul Huq Zia, Ruhul Kuddus Talukdar Dulu, Naser Rahman, Mizanur Rahman Minu, and Lutfozzaman Babar are among the convicted.