A Dhaka court yesterday granted the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) three more months for a further investigation into the 1981 murder of Maj General Abul Manzur.

Manzur, a sector commander of the Liberation War, was killed at Chittagong Cantonment on June 1 of the year, just two days

into the assassination of the then president Ziaur Rahman.

Judge (in charge) Badrul Alam, of the First Additional District and Sessions Judge's Court, asked CID to complete the probe by January 8 next year after the investigating agency submitted a petition seeking more time.

This is for the fourth time Abdul KaharAkond, a special superintendent of police of CID, who is in-charge of the further investigation, has sought time extension.

He told the court that he was yet to communicate with the wife of Gen Manzur, now in the USA for statement. But he met Lubna Manzur, elder daughter of Manzur, in the USA.

Soon after the court ordered a further investigation into the

case on February 27 this year, Akond went to the USA to meet Manzur's wife but he could not as she was sick.

A foreign renowned journalist Lawrence Lifschultz had written a series of articles in The Daily Star and Prothom Alo on the murder of Manzur, in which he cited an eyewitness.

"I communicated with Lifschultz in the USA, but he could not produce his so-called eyewitness" Akond said.

If the court gave CID more time, he would try again to communicate with Manzur's wife and Lifschultz, the CID official said in the petition submitted to the court yesterday.

Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad, the prime accused in the case, had been exempted from personal appearance before the court. His lawyer Sheikh Mohammad Sirajul Islam represented him yesterday.

The other two accused Maj (retd) Kazi Emdadul Haque and Lt Col (retd) Mostafa Kamaluddin Bhuiyan were present at the court.

The court proceedings against two other accused - Maj Gen (retd) Abdul Latif and Lt Col (retd) Shamsur Rahman Shams - were stayed following a High Court order.

Earlier, February 10 had been fixed for delivering the verdict of the case. However, the judge, who had fixed the date, was transferred a few days before the judgment day. The case has so far seen 22 judges since it was filed in August 1995.