Bangladesh SC stays release of former PM on bail in corruption case

Dhaka, (Hindustan Times), Mar 19, 2018 - Bangladesh’s Supreme Court on Monday stayed the release of former prime minister Khaleda Zia on bail in a corruption case under which she was sentenced to five years imprisonment, in a setback to her political ambitions in this year’s general election.   

On March 12, the High Court here granted the chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) a four-month interim bail. However, on Monday a full bench of the Appellate Division passed the order to stay until May 8 the High Court order which granted bail to Zia in the graft case.   

Following the order, Zia will not be released from jail till May 8, Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) lawyer Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan was quoted as saying.   

Zia, 72, was sentenced on February 8 in connection with the embezzlement of 21 million taka (about USD 250,000) in foreign donations meant for the Zia Orphanage Trust, named after her late husband Ziaur Rahman, a military ruler-turned-politician.