Law
week
Graft trial caught in HC tangle
The military-backed caretaker government has won all cases so far in the fast-track special courts but failed to cross the next hurdle when top graft convicts challenged the verdicts in the High Court.
Though the prosecution is happy over quick disposal of cases and the success rate it is equally disappointed with the pace appeal petitions are being handled at the HC. The HC has received around a dozen appeals, none of which could be heard yet thanks to severe case backlog. Even in some cases, the 90-day time stipulated for disposal of appeals has expired. Many believe trial of top graft-suspects is going to meet the same fate like thousands of other appeals pending with the HC for years.
Set up last year for quick disposal of cases, 10 special courts at the MP Hostel in National Parliament Complex received 204 corruption cases until end of June this year. -The Daily Star, August 20, 2008.
NBR, cops asked to check vital records
The Election Commission (EC) asked the National Board of Revenue (NBR) and police department to check income tax returns, wealth statements and police records of those elected in the August 4 polls.
The documents submitted to the commission before the elections were sent to the NBR and the office of inspector general of police (IGP), EC Secretariat sources said.Earlier on August 4, the EC decided to investigate allegations that some of the officials-elect had turned in false or incomplete information.
Candidates in the local polls had to produce statements on their professions, annual income and expenditure, assets and liabilities, sources of election funds and records of police cases, and copies of last income tax returns. The EC Secretariat has requested the NBR and IGP to give opinions on each of those elected in light of checks on their documents. -The Daily Star, August 19, 2008.
CA also asks top bureaucrats to overcome 'partisan' concerns
Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed asked the country's top bureaucrats to overcome “partisan” concerns and concentrate on holding free, fair and credible upazila and general elections. “It's everyone's responsibility to create an atmosphere conduce to holding free and fair elections,” Fakhruddin told the secretaries at a meeting in the secretariat, according to his Press Secretary Syed Fahim Munaim.
Talking to the secretaries at the closed-door meeting, the chief adviser urged them to play their part to ensure that voters can cast their votes in December without fear. “We'll be able to hand over power to an elected government through elections to be held in December if we get your overall cooperation,” Fakhruddin was quoted as saying by Fahim at a press conference later.
Fakhruddin also said it is time for a comprehensive reform programme for the civil service to streamline administrative methods, speed up processes and cut red-tape. A number of secretaries suggested ways to improve the public service, including immediate implementation of Pay Commission, forming a recruitment commission, and raising retirement age from 57. -The Daily Star, August 19, 2008.
Bangladeshi workers protest again in Kuwait
The Kuwaiti Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour has issued orders to security authorities to gear up and be ready to face further demonstrations by Bangladeshi workers in the country, a Kuwaiti daily reported. The Kuwait Times also reported that Kuwaiti police on Sunday broke up protests by over 300 Bangladeshi workers in Hasawi and took at least fifty men into custody.
The workers were protesting non-payment of salary arrears. In another incident, the United Arab Emirates deported 87 Bangladeshi workers from Dubai Immigration, saying their visas were not valid.
An immigration police at Zia International Airport said that these workers were flown back by three flights of Gulf Air, Emirates and Qatar Airways. They had left for UAE with work visas on August 13. The recruiting agencies that processed these workers' documents could not be contacted. A number of workers deported by the Kuwaiti police, upon their arrival in Dhaka said that the Kuwaiti police had tortured them and deported them though they had not taken part in any demonstrations. -The Daily Star, August 19, 2008.
Civil, police admin to be reshuffled in two weeks
The government is going to rearrange the civil and police administration in two weeks through transfer and posting, and through withdrawal of officials facing specific allegations or having poor performance records, officials say. Instructed by the Chief Adviser's Office, the establishment ministry along with the Cabinet Division initiated moves last week and is now busy scrutinising field level officials to pull out those whose involvement might make polls controversial.
In the police administration, officials posted by the then Iajuddin Ahmed-led caretaker government would be transferred from their present stations. “We have 10 such superintendents of police [SP] and 58 officers-in-charge [OC] who will have new postings,” said Additional Inspector General of Police NBK Tripura. He added they have backtracked on a decision of massive reshuffle in police administration.
“The officers facing allegations of specific misconducts or irregularities or showing poor performance will be withdrawn from the field,” he told The Daily Star. The police administration is doing the homework to complete the reshuffle by end of August, he added. -The Daily Star, August 18, 2008.
Suspects get bail, cases stayed on law loopholes
Corruption suspects are getting released on the High Court (HC) bail and cases against them are being stayed because of loopholes in the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) laws and rules, observed a few Supreme Court (SC) lawyers. They said these loopholes constitute three grounds on which the HC mostly grants bail to accused persons and stays proceedings against them.
One is the ACC officials' failure to submit enquiry reports within 30 days of being tasked with gathering information about a corruption suspect and the investigation officers' failure to submit reports within 60 days of filing of the cases as per the rules.
The two other grounds are ACC's not issuing gazette notifications on appointing investigation officers and not serving notices for submitting wealth statements upon women and children charged with aiding and abetting the principal accused in committing corruption. -The Daily Star, August 18, 2008.
High Court's rule questioning Gulshan Club's structure
A Division Bench of the High Court Division consisting of Mr. Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain and Mr. Justice Farid Ahmed issued a rule nisi calling upon the respondents, including Government & RAJUK among others, to show cause as to why the erection of Gulshan Club's impugned establishment should not be declared illegal and without lawful authority. The rule was issued upon a writ petition filed by some Mrs. Zubeda Mumtaz Ara Rahman on 7th July 2008. She alleged in the petition that Gulshan Club constructed a two-storied generator house adjacent to her plot in violation of law. Before taking resort to the Supreme Court she went to RAJKUK but this government authority failed to make the Club comply with law despite separate attempts, she alleged. The petitioner also argued that no one has the authority to allot the lands of Public Park to anybody.
Mr. H.R. Sharif along with Mr. Jurat M. Sharif appeared on behalf of the petitioner while Mr. Rajik Al-Jalil represented the Government. -press release issued by the petitioner.
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