DHAKA: The High Court (HC) has fixed March 23 to deliver the verdict on an appeal filed by former president HM Ershad in a corruption case.

The bench of Justice Ruhul Quddus fixed the date after concluding hearing on the appeal on Thursday (March 09).

Earlier a trial court awarded three years’ imprisonment to Ershad in the corruption case. Ershad filed the appeal in the higher court challenging the lower court’s judgment.   

Advocate Sheikh Sirajul Islam argued for Ershad in Thursday’s hearing, while Advocate Khurshid Alam moved on behalf of the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC).   

According to the case statement, on January 8 in 1991, the deputy director Saleh Uddin Ahmed of the then Bureau of Anti-Corruption (BAC), which became obsolete after formation of the ACC in 2004, filed the case against Ershad with the Cantonment police station.

In the case, it was said that Ershad is accused of misappropriating gifts worth of Tk 1.91 crore belonged to the state funds during his regime from December 11 in 1983 to December 6 in 1990. 

On February 3 in 1992, Ershad was convicted and sentenced for 3-year imprisonment in the case by a special Judge court in Dhaka. Later, Ershad filed an appeal with the HC challenging the verdict. In response, HC stayed the verdict.

On June 26 in 2012, the ACC became a party in the case following directive of a bench of the High Court. 

BDST: 1915 HRS, MAR 09, 2017
EHJ/AP