Niko graft case: Date fixed for testimony against Khaleda

A Dhaka court on Tuesday fixed 12 September for recording deposition of prosecution witnesses in Niko graft case against Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia and seven others, reports news agency BSS.

As Begum Zia’s lawyer earlier filed an appeal in the High Court challenging the validity of the charge sheet and sought time to adjourn taking of evidence, judge Sheikh Hafizur Rahman of the (temporary) Special Judge Court of Dhaka No. 9 allowed the time plea and fixed the date afresh.

The anti-graft body filed the case against five, including Begum Khaleda Zia, with Tejgaon police station on 9 December, 2007, for abusing power in signing a deal with Canadian company Niko for exploring and extracting gas.

The ACC submitted the charge sheet against 11 people, including Khaleda Zia on 5 May 2008. The ACC accused them of incurring loss of more than Tk 130 billion (13,000 crore) of state exchequer by signing that deal.

The other accused in the case include barrister Moudud Ahmed, AKM Mosharraf Hossain, Kamal Uddin Siddiqui and Gias Uddin Al Mamun.