Petition for extending suspension of Khaleda’s jail term in hand: Law Minister

The Law Ministry on Thursday received a petition seeking another extended suspension of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s jail term sent by the Home Ministry.

“We have received a file from the Home Ministry regarding the extension of Khaleda Zia's conditional release. We’ll send it back to the Home Ministry with our recommendations,” Law Minister Anisul Huq told UNB on Thursday.

Replying to a question whether the BNP chief will be allowed to go abroad this time, the minister said, he still did not see the file. “But I can say that the previous conditions will remain in our recommendations.”

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s younger brother Shamim Eskandar submitted a fresh application recently to the Home Ministry seeking extension of her release period.

In the application, he urged the government to relax the conditions of her release and allow taking her abroad for treatment.

The government extended Khaleda’s conditional release in the two corruption cases several times.

The former prime minister was sent to Old Dhaka Central Jail after she was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment by a special court in the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption case on February 8, 2018. She was convicted in a second corruption case later.

The 77-year-old BNP chief has been staying at her Gulshan residence since her release. A special team of her personal physicians has been overseeing her treatment.