DHAKA: A Dhaka court on Sunday deferred until November 24 the recording of deposition against BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia in the Zia Charitable Trust and Zia Orphanage Trust graft cases.

Sources told banglanews that Judge Bashudeb Roy of the Special Judge’s Court-3 passed the order in response to petitions filed by the BNP chief’s lawyers.

The pro-BNP lawyers appealed for deferring the hearing as the case is now under trial in the Supreme Court’s appellate division, sources added.

However, the plaintiff deputy director of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Harun-ur-Rashid and the defender Khaleda Zia were present at the court while the judge passed the order.

Earlier, the court fixed October 26 for recording deposition in Zia Charitable and Orphanage Trust graft cases against BNP chief Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman and four others.

But, Khaleda did not appear before the court on the day.

Zia Orphanage Case

The ACC filed the graft case on July 3, 2008 with Ramna Police Station accusing Khaleda, her eldest son Tarique Rahman and four others of misappropriating over Tk 2.10 crore which came as grants from a foreign bank for orphans.   

The other accused are former BNP lawmaker Kazi Saleemul Haque, businessperson Sharfuddin Ahmed, Khaleda's former principal secretary Kamal Uddin Siddiqui and Momenur Rahman.

Zia Charitable Trust Case

On August 8, 2011, Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed the case with Tejgaon Police Station accusing four people, including Khaleda, of abusing power in raising funds for the trust from unknown sources.

The other accused in the case are Harris Chowdhury, Ziaul Islam Munna, assistant private secretary (APS) to Harris, and Monirul Islam Khan, APS to Sadeque Hossain Khoka, mayor of the erstwhile Dhaka City Corporation.

** Khaleda appears before court
** Khaleda to appear before court Sunday

BDST: 1321 HRS, NOV 9, 2014