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Radar Graft Case

Ershad pleads not guilty

Court Correspondent
Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad yesterday pleaded not guilty, and demanded justice when a Dhaka court read out charges brought against him by 12 witnesses in the Radar purchase graft case.
Judge Abdur Rashid of the Special Court for Dhaka Division fixed May 29 for hearing arguments from the prosecution and the defence.
Two others accused in the case former air chiefs Sultan Mahmud and Mamtazuddin Ahmed also claimed themselves innocent and demanded justice after the charges were read
FROM PAGE 20 out to them.
On April 24, the same court concluded the recording of statements of the 12 witnesses in the much-talked-about radar purchase graft case.
Abdus Sattar Sarkar, deputy direc-tor of the Anti-Corruption Commission and also investigation officer of the case, pressed charges against Ershad and four others on October27,1994.
Of them, AKM Musa, a director of United Traders Ltd, has been absconding since the case was filed.
The government later withdrew charges against another accused Shahazad Ali, a director of United Traders Ltd.
The court framed charges against Ershad, Sultan, Mamtazuddin and MusaonAugust 12,1995.
The High Court cleared the way for trial of the case on August 8,2006 after proceedings had been stayed for a long time. The trial resumed on November 2,2010.
The now-defunct Bureau of AntiCorruption lodged the case against Ershad and four others with Cantonment police on May 4,1992.
According to the prosecution, Ershad in collusion with others had allegedly caused a loss of Tk 64.04 crore to the state exchequer by purchasing radars from the US instead of France for the air force while he was in power.
Ershad was accused in 21 cases, including several graft cases, after he was ousted from power in 1990.
He has so far been acquitted of and discharged from 18 cases as the prosecution failed to prove the charges brought against him.
Three other cases, including the one for murder of Maj Gen Abul Manzur, are still pending with the court.