Cases against Ershad: Raushan to ask PM to have those dropped

Opposition leader Raushan Ershad yesterday said she would urge the prime minister once again to take steps so that all the cases against her husband and Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad were withdrawn. 

"Whenever I raised the issue to the honourable prime minister, she told me that she would take measures in this regard," Raushan, also senior co-chair of the JP, said at the party's joint meeting at city's Institution of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh.

In the meeting, the JP leaders and activists chanted slogans, demanding withdrawal of cases against Ershad. In response, Raushan assured the activists of taking the responsibility for withdrawing the cases.

"I am more disappointed than you [activists] are because he [Ershad] is your chairman, but my husband. You don't worry. I have taken on the responsibility," she said.

Pointing to the January 5 national election in 2014, boycotted by most of the political parties, Raushan said, "Our main condition for joining the election was that the cases would be withdrawn. But they [Awami League government] are yet to keep that promise."

At present, proceedings of three cases are going on against Ershad in lower courts. These are radar purchase graft, plot allotment and Maj Gen Abul Manzur murder cases.