The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The High Court, asked for more detailed submission, yesterday and sent back a writ petition of Sheikh Rehana seeking direction to allow appointment of a lawyer to defend her against the graft charge filed by Azam J Chowdhury.

The writ petition challenged the prosecution of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) for showing Rehana 'absconding' in the Tk 3-crore extortion case that she has been facing along with her elder sister ex-PM Sheikh Hasina and cousin Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim.

Earlier, Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge's court that is holding hearing of the case for framing charges rejected Rehana's application for appointing her lawyer, since police showed Rehana, who lives in London, as a fugitive.

Barrister Ajmalul Hossain who moved the case for Rehana told the court that Rehana was the daughter of the independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

"She has long been living abroad. She owns a home and her children study there. She is not a fugitive," he said.

Another counsel, Barrister Rafiqe-ul Huq, said the case mentioned that Rehana lived in England and the US.

"So an order on her to be present in the court must be notified through the embassies of those countries. But it has not been done," Huq submitted before the court.

The summon and subsequent warrant of arrest were sent to an address in Dhaka where she does not live.

Barrister Huq argued that the prosecution did not exhaust all legal procedures before declaring her 'absconder'.

In response, the court said those details had not been included in the petition and returned it to the counsels for the addition. Before passing the orders, the High Court said an accused "must be present in court during trial-that is the legal system".

The bench comprising Justice ABM Khairul Haque and Justice Md Abdul Awal, however, asked her counsels to re-file the petition putting their submission in detail.

"We'll plug the holes and file the petition again," Barrister Ajmalul Hossain told reporters later.