March 29, 2024, 4:42 pm


SAM

Published:
2018-03-08 17:53:29 BdST

ACC can reinvestigate graft charges against Morshed: SC


FT ONLINE

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) can reinvestigate graft charges against former BNP minister M Morshed Khan, his wife and son, the Supreme Court ruled today.

The apex court upheld a High Court verdict that permitted the ACC to reinvestigate the case.

A four-member bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, passed the order after dismissing a leave-to-appeal petition filed by Morshed and his family.

Now, following the Supreme Court order, ACC will reinvestigate into the case, Anti-Corruption Commission’s lawyer Adv Khurshid Alam Khan said.

Whether Morshed, his wife and son will have to surrender before a trial court in this regard, will be known after the Supreme Court releases full text of its verdict.

The lower court on April 15, 2016 accepted the final report and exempted the three from the money laundering charge.

The Hong Kong police, who froze their bank accounts in 2008 under an administrative order, have meanwhile sent a letter to the ACC asking if they should reopen the accounts as there were no legal bars, the ACC lawyer said.

The accounts were subsequently opened as no evidence of money laundering was found against the three accused.

The ACC then submitted two petitions to a Dhaka court to revive the case and seek permission to reinvestigate the case.

The Dhaka court on June 2, 2016 rejected the petitions and on June 5, 2016 the commission moved the revision petition before the HC challenging the lower court orders.

The HC on June 5, 2016 asked the authorities concerned to freeze the bank accounts of Morshed, his wife and their son with the Hong Kong bank and also asked them to restrain from transferring 16 million Hong Kong dollars from the bank till further orders, he added.

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