Online Desk: The leaders and activists of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) staged a demonstration in front of their central office at Naya Paltan in Dhaka on Wednesday protesting the lower court verdict against party’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman and his wife Zubaida Rahman in a graft case. The BNP leaders and activists have started gathering in the area since 1pm on Wednesday. During that time, a large number of law enforcers were deployed there.
After the court delivered the verdict, the BNP followers along with party senior leaders, including its vice chairman Barkatullah Bulu, chairperson’s advisers Amanullah Aman, and senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, brought out a procession towards Nightingale crossing from Nayapaltan after 4pm. They chanted slogans that they did not accept the verdict and mentioned it as the ‘verdict of Sheikh Hasina’.
On Wednesday afternoon, a Dhaka court sentenced Tarique to nine years’ imprisonment and his wife Zubaida Rahman to three years’ in the graft case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission in 2007.
Judge Md Asaduzzaman of Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge’s Court handed down the verdict in absence of the convicts as they have long been staying in London. The court also fined Tarique Tk 3 crore and Zubaida Tk 35 lakh.
Meanwhile, a group of pro-BNP lawyers also staged a demonstration in the Dhaka Court area. They began the demonstration in the morning.