Dhaka court asks to publish gazette to summon Tarique, Zubaida

A Dhaka court on Thursday ordered the authorities to publish a gazette asking BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman and his wife Dr Zubaida to appear before the court in a graft case.

Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Md Asaduzzaman passed the order. The court also ordered the authorities to submit a report in this regard on February 6.

On January 5, the same court asked police to confiscate all assets of Tarique and Zubaida.

Court Inspector of Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Aminul Islam said police submitted a report on the confiscation of their property, mentioning that no property has been found in their permanent address.

On November 1 last year, the court issued arrest warrants against Tarique and Zubaida after accepting charges against them.

According to the case statement, the ACC filed the case at Kafrul Police Station on September 26, 2007, against Tarique, his wife, and mother-in-law Syeda Iqbal Mand Banu for amassing wealth of around Tk4.82 crore beyond their known sources of income and for concealing information on wealth.

A charge sheet was submitted to the court against them in 2008.

Later, the High Court issued a rule suspending the proceedings on the application of Zubaida Rahman.

On April 12 in 2018, the High Court gave its judgment dismissing the rule issued to dismiss the case. At the same time, Zubaida Rahman was ordered to surrender before the court within eight weeks.

Zubaida then filed a leave to appeal in the Appellate Division against the judgment of the High Court.

Lawyers said Zubaida, now living in the UK, is a fugitive in the case and will now have to go to jail after surrender. She will then be able to appeal for bail.