A Dhaka Court will give its decision on August 12 whether the charges would be taken into cognisance against Opposition Leader and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman and four others in a case filed for embezzlement ofTk 2.10 crore by forming fraudulent Zia Orphanage Trust.

Judge ANM Bashirullah of Metropolitan Sessions Judge's k SEE PAGE 15 COL 5 FROM PAGE 1

Court fixed the date of hearing after the case was transferred to the court on Thursday for trial.

Arrest warrants would be issued against the accused if the charges are taken into cognisance, the sources said.

On Wednesday, Deputy Assistant Director of AntiCorruption Commission (ACC) Harunur Rashid, also the investigation officer of the embezzlement case, submitted the charge sheet to the Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court showing 36 prosecution witnesses.

The other charge-sheeted are former BNP lawmaker Kazi Salimul Haque, Khaleda's nephew Mominur Rahman, Sharfuddin Ahmed, and former Principal Secretary Kamal Uddin Siddiqui. Mominur and Kamal Uddin have been absconding.

Khaleda is also accused in Gatco, Niko and Barapukuria corruption cases while Tariquein 15 other cases.

Of the accused, Khaleda, Tarique, Salimul and Sharfuddin were earlier granted bails from the High Court on different dates.

The higher courts had stayed the proceedings of all the three cases against Khaleda andTarique following writ petitions.

According to the case statement, then Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and the other accused embezzled over Tk 2.10 crore by establishing Zia Orphanage Trust that exists only on paper.

The complainant alleged that on June 9,1991, a grant of $1,255,000, equivalent to about Tk 4.45 crore at the time, was transferred from United Saudi Commercial Bank to Prime Minister's Orphanage Fund--a fund that was created by the then premier shortly before the transfer--as part of the embezzlement scheme.

Only Khaleda could administer the fund, complainant added.

Meanwhile, condemning submission of charge sheet against Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman in Zia Orphanage Trust case, BNP Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain yesterday said government is trying to malign the image of top leadership of nationalist force by using the cases filed by an 'unlawful government'.

"This case is part of a conspiracy to destroy the nationalist force and its future leadership," he said in a statement that asked the authority to withdraw all cases against Khaleda Zia and her sons-larique Rahman and Arafat Rahman.

He said government in one hand Is withdrawing all cases against their leaders and workers terming them political cases but on the other trying to harass BNP leaders including Khaleda Zia and her sons by submittingcharge sheet.