By Mizan Rahman/Dhaka

The Supreme Court yesterday again deferred hearing on two criminal petitions (CPs) for leave-to-appeal filed by Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairperson Khaleda Zia against a High Court (HC) order that rejected her two writ petitions in the Zia Charitable Trust and Zia Orphanage Trust graft cases.
A five-member Appellate Division bench, headed by chief justice M Muzammel Hossain, passed the order and re-fixed September 1 for hearing of the two leave-to-appeal petitions following a time prayer as Khaleda Zia’s lawyer did not get certified copy of the HC verdict.
The court will hear Khaleda’s two petitions against another HC order rejecting two revision appeals seeking to quash a lower court order against her in the two graft cases. Besides, the hearing on the other two petitions – civil miscellaneous petitions (CMPs) - filed by BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia against a High Court order rejecting the petitions challenging the legality of the appointment of special Judge was not held, as the matter did not appear in the day’s cause list of the supreme court.
On March 19, judge Basudev Roy of Dhaka’s special judge court-3 framed charges against BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia, her son Tarique Rahman and seven other people rejecting their time petitions in the Zia Charitable Trust and Zia Orphanage Trust graft cases.
The BNP chief filed separate revision appeals with the High Court on April 13, seeking to quash the lower court indictment orders against her in the two graft cases. However, the HC on April 23 rejected the two petitions.
On July 7, the BNP chief filed two criminal petitions (CPs) for leave-to-appeal with the Appellate Division against two High Court orders in connection with the two graft cases. On July 13, a judge of the appellate division fixed July 24 for hearing the two CPs and sent it to the chief justice who constituted the third bench for disposal of the two petitions by the former Prime Minister.
On August 8, 2011, the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) filed the Zia Charitable Trust graft case with Tejgaon Police Station accusing four people, including Khaleda Zia, of abusing power in raising funds for the trust from unknown sources.
ACC deputy director Harunur Rashid, also an investigation officer of the case, pressed charges against the accused on January 16, 2012. Besides, the ACC filed the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case on July 3, 2008 with Ramna Police Station accusing Khaleda Zia, her eldest son Tarique Rahman, now living in the UK after securing bail, and four others for misappropriating over 21mn taka which provided as grants by a foreign bank for orphans.
On August 5, 2010, ACC deputy director Harunur Rashid submitted a charge-sheet to the court in the case against six people, including BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia.