The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed a High Court verdict that sentenced BNP's acting Chairman Tarique Rahman to seven years' imprisonment in a money laundering case.
The apex court also stayed a lower court judgement that sentenced Tarique's close aide Gias Uddin Al Mamun to seven years' imprisonment in the case.
A four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed came up with the order following a leave to appeal petition filed by Mamun challenging the HC verdict.
The apex court also allowed Mamun to move an appeal before this court against the HC judgement.
Lawyer Kayser Kamal and Sheikh Md Zakir appeared for Tarique and Mamun while lawyer Ashif Hassan stood for the ACC.
Later, Barrister Kayser Kamal, counsel for Tarique Rahman, told reporters that the High Court convicted and sentenced Tarique Rahman. But, the lower court concerned had acquitted him in the case.
"We had filed the leave to appeal petition against the High Court judgment. On Tuesday the apex court granted that plea, staying the High Court judgment as well. The court asked both parties to submit the summaries of our plea by December 31," the lawyer added.
Tarique was arrested in an anti-corruption crackdown in 2007 and was released on bail on September 3 the following year. He flew to the UK on September 11 for treatment and has been staying in London since then.
In the money laundering case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission in 2009, he was accused of siphoning off Tk 20.41 crore to Singapore when the BNP was in power.
According to the case document, ACC filed the case against Tarique and Mamun for taking more than Tk 20 crore as a bribe and laundering it abroad.
Dhaka Third Special Judge Md Motahar Hossain on November 17 in 2013, acquitted Tarique from the charges and sentenced Mamun to seven years' imprisonment, and fined him Tk 40 crore.
The ACC filed an appeal against Tarique's acquittal on December 5 in 2013. Mamun too filed an appeal against the lower court sentence.
On July 21 of 2016, the HC sentenced Tarique to seven years' imprisonment and fined him Tk 20 crore in the case involving Tk 20.41 crore.
In 2013, the lower court acquitted Tarique from the money laundering charge and jailed Gias Uddin Al Mamun for seven years and fined him Tk 40 crore.
A High Court bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Amir Hossain passed the order, repealing a lower court order that had acquitted the BNP leader in the case.
The court, however, upheld the lower court sentence of seven years' imprisonment for Gias Uddin Al Mamun while commuting his fine of Tk 40 crore to Tk 20 crore.
Later, Tarique and Mamun filed an appeal with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court against the High Court order. After hearing on the appeal, the apex court on Tuesday came up with the stay order.
