Radar Purchase Graft Case Against Ershad
Trial begins after 18 yrs
The trial of radar purchase graft case filed 18 years back against former president and Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad and three others began yesterday with deposition of the complainant.
Judge Mohammad Abdul Majid of the Special Court for Dhaka Division recoded parts of the statement of complainant Ali Haider, an official of now defunct Bureau of Anti-Corruption.
The court fixed January 15 for next hearing of the case and asked Ali Haider to appear before it on the scheduled date.
During yesterday's hearing, Ershad, former air force chiefs--Sultan Mahmud and Mamtazuddin Ahmed, who are now on bail, were present in the court while another accused AKM Musa, a director of United Traders Ltd, has been absconding since the case was filed.
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 United States instead of France for air force while he was in power.
The Bureau of Anti-Corruption filed a corruption case against Ershad and four others with Cantonment Police Station on May 4, 1992.
Abdus Sattar Sarkar, an official of the bureau, pressed charges against Ershad and four others on October 27, 1994, showing 38 people as prosecution witnesses.
The court framed charges against Ershad and three others on August 12, 1995.
But the government had withdrawn charge against another accused Shahazad Ali, a director of United Traders Ltd.
Meantime, proceedings of the case had been stayed for a long time following an order of the High Court (HC). But the HC had cleared the way for trial of the case on august 8, 2006.
Earlier, Ershad was discharged and acquitted of different graft charges.
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