Court orders freezing Tarique-Zubaida's assets

A Dhaka court directed the government to confiscate all moveable and immovable assets of BNP's acting chairman Tarique Rahman and his wife Zubaida Rahman in a graft case filed by the anti-corruption commission (ACC).  

Dhaka Metropolitan senior special judge Md Asaduzzaman passed the order on Thursday.

ACC's public prosecutor (PP) Mosharraf Hossain Kajal confirmed the matter to Prothom Alo.

PP Mosharraf Hossain said the court issued an arrest warrant against the couple on 1 November. They are now on the run.

As per the code of criminal procedure, the court ordered the government to freeze the assets of Tarique and his wife. The court set 19 January for the next hearing of the case, he added.

According to the lawyer and the court, the ACC lodged a case with Kafrul police station in Dhaka on 26 September in 2007 against Tarique Rahman, Zubaida Rahman and her mother Syeda Rahman Iqbal over concealing the information of assets and amassing wealth beyond known sources of income.

A charge sheet was submitted to the court against the thrio in 2008.