Hearing on Zubaida Rahman’s appeal concluded, verdict on May 28

The hearing of Dr Zubaida Rahman's appeal against her three-year prison sentence in a case related to concealing wealth information and acquiring illegal assets has concluded. The High Court will deliver its verdict on May 28.

On Monday (May 26), after the hearing, Justice Md. Khizir Hayat’s High Court bench fixed the date for the verdict. The appeal hearing began on May 22.

Senior lawyers SM Shahjahan, Barrister Kaiser Kamal, and Advocate Zakir Hossain Bhuiyan represented Zubaida Rahman in court. Advocate Asif Hasan appeared on behalf of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

Earlier, on May 13, the High Court waived a 587-day delay in filing the appeal. The following day, the court granted bail to Zubaida Rahman and accepted her appeal for hearing. At the same time, it stayed the monetary fine imposed by the trial court and summoned the case documents. After that, Zubaida Rahman, wife of BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman, filed her appeal.

On September 26, 2007, the ACC filed a case with Kafrul Police Station in Dhaka against three people, including Tarique Rahman and Zubaida Rahman, for concealing wealth information and acquiring illegal assets. The following year, a charge sheet was submitted to the court. On August 2, 2023, the trial court delivered its verdict, sentencing Tarique Rahman to 9 years in prison and his wife Zubaida Rahman to 3 years.

In addition to the prison sentences, the court ordered the confiscation of assets worth Tk 27,493,087 (approximately 2.75 crore taka) illegally acquired by Tarique Rahman in favor of the state. It also fined Tarique Rahman Tk 30 million (3 crore) and Zubaida Rahman Tk 3.5 million (35 lakh).

Following the fall of the Awami League government, the interim government suspended Zubaida Rahman’s sentence on September 22 of last year for one year, under the condition that she file an appeal.