FBI official, Canadian cop to testify in Niko graft case against Khaleda

A Dhaka court has granted the application to take depositions from an official of US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and two members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Niko graft case filed against BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia and seven others.

Judge Sheikh Hafizur Rahman of Dhaka Special Judge’s Court-9 at Dhaka Central Jail in Keraniganj passed the order after hearing on Sunday (September 17).

Allowing three foreign witnesses for testimony against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia in Niko graft case, the court fixed October 10 for next grilling.

Earlier on September 12, Attorney General AM Amin Uddin filed an application to produce the witnesses. Then the court fixed today for the hearing on the petition.

On that day, Judge Sheikh Hafizur recorded the statement of the then Anti-Corruption Commission’s (ACC) assistant director Muhammad Mahbubul Alam, also the plaintiff of the case.

Earlier on March 19 in 2023, the court framed charges against the accused Khaleda, who is now on bail, pleaded not guilty through her lawyer Masud Ahmed Talukder on that day and demanded justice.

The other accused in the case are- Kamal Uddin Siddiqui, Khandaker Shahidul Islam, CM Eusuf Hossain, Mir Moinul Haque, Gias Uddin Al Mamun, Selim Bhuiyan, and Kashem Sharif.

The anti-graft body filed the case against five including Begum Khaleda Zia with Tejgaon police station on December 9, 2007, for abusing power in signing a deal with Canadian company Niko for exploring and extracting gas.

The ACC on May 5, 2008, submitted the charge-sheet against 11 people including Khaleda Zia. The ACC accused them of incurring a loss of more than Taka 13 thousand crore to state exchequer by signing that deal.