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Nazmul Huda gets 12yrs

Wife Sigma acquitted in extortion case

Court Correspondent
A Dhaka court yesterday sentenced former communications minister barrister Nazmul Huda to 12 years' rigorous imprisonment (RI) and acquitted his wife advocate Sigma Huda on all charges in an extortion case.
Meantime, Beximco Holdings Ltd chairman Sohel F Rahman, vice chairman Salman F Rahman, former managing director of Arab Bangladesh Bank Ltd CM Koyes Sami and seven other people were
cleared of Tk 191.39 crore misappropriation charges.
Judge Mohammad Abu Mohsin at the Fifth Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court returned the verdict in presence of the Huda couple, saying charges against Nazmul were proved beyond doubt.
The court also fined him Tk 50,000, defaulting on which will carry another six months in jail.
Earlier, the prosecution and the defence had completed their
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arguments: the court recorded the statements of 11 prosecution witnesses.
Former BNP lawmaker and owner of Cab Express Ltd GM Siraj filed the case with Dhanmondi Police Station on July 27 last year, stating that the Huda couple on February 23 in 2003 demanded two Maruti cars from him for weekly Khaborer Antaralay, published by Sigma Huda.
He said the couple finally intimidated him into giving them a Maruti car worth Tk 3.95 lakh on February 27 the same year.
Police pressed charges against Nazmul and Sigma on November 29 last year.
Huda, accused in a dozen other criminal cases, has already been sentenced in two cases while Sigma, accused in three other extortion cases, has been given three years in a bribery case. SALMAN I RAHMAN CASE Judge Mohammad Azizul Haque of the Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court cleared the accused of the misappropriation charges after accepting the final report (FRT).
The other acquitted are former managing director of Arab Bangladesh Bank Abu Hanif, former bank officials MA Awal and Tawhidul Islam, Beximco Holdings Ltd directors Iqbal Ahmed, MA Qasem, Osman Kaiser Chowdhury and ex-official Binoy Krishna Nath.
Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Assistant Director Mahbubul Alam filed the case with Motijheel Police Station on October 1 last year, alleging that the Beximco high-ups took out a 191.39 crore loan from Arab Bangladesh Bank putting up 151.51 acres of land in Gazipur as collateral which actually belonged to the government and locals.
The former bank officials were accused of not vetting the documents properly before granting the loan.
ACC assistant director and investigation officer of the case, Mojibur Rahman, in his June 5 final report, however, said the charges brought against the accused were not proved.
Appealing to the court for acquitting the accused on all charges, the IO said the accused had also repaid the loan.