HC to hear challenge to Tarique's acquittal on May 4

The High Court yesterday fixed May 4 for hearing the appeal filed against a lower court judgment that acquitted BNP leader Tarique Rahman in a money laundering case.

It will also hold hearing the same day another appeal filed by Tarique's friend and business partner Giasuddin Al Mamun against the trial court verdict that has sentenced him to seven years' imprisonment in the same case.

The bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Amir Hossain fixed the date following a prayer moved by the Anti Corruption Commission in the case involving Tk 20.41 crore, Deputy Attorney General Shaikh AKM Moniruzzaman Kabir told The Daily Star.

ACC's lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan told The Daily Star that the office of chief metropolitan magistrate of Dhaka has informed the HC that the summons on Tarique in the case reached his London address, but he did not reply.

Tarique is a fugitive in the eye of law, as he did not surrender to the lower court as per an HC directive, he added.

The anti-graft body filed the case against Tarique and Mamun in October, 2009 for syphoning off the money to Singapore between 2003 and 2007.

On November 17, 2013, a Dhaka court acquitted Tarique and sentenced Mamun to seven years' imprisonment and fined him Tk 40 crore in the case.

Later the ACC appealed to the HC, challenging Tarique's acquittal and the HC on January 19, 2014 ordered Tarique to surrender before the trial court.

The HC on January 12 this year directed its registrar to issue a notice asking Tarique, now in London, to surrender before the trial court by February 14 as per its January 19, 2014 order.

The money laundering case is one of the 16 cases, including the August 21 grenade attack cases, filed against Tarique. He was arrested on March 7, 2007 during a crackdown by a military-backed caretaker government.

On parole, Tarique went to London in September, 2008 for treatment and has been living there since then. Mamun is now in jail.