The government has appealed against Jamaat-e-Islami chief Motiur Rahman Nizami's bail awarded by the High Court in the GATCO graft case.
Advocate Zahurul Islam submitted the appeal on behalf of the government on Thursday.
Nizami's lawyer Abdur Razzak told journalists that a hearing on the appeal might be held by the Appellate Division chamber judge on Sunday.
Nizami also filed a writ petition with the High Court bench of Justice Khademul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Mashuk Hossain Ahmed on Thursday challenging the legality of the case and its trial, and requesting a stay on the proceedings against him.
His lawyer told journalists that the hearing on the writ petition may be held sometime next week.
The detained former minister was arrested on May 18 as an accused in the GATCO case alongside Khaleda Zia, her younger son Arafat Rahman Coco and others.
The High Court granted Nizami bail on July 14; he was released the next day being the first senior politician to be freed on bail in a corruption case since 1/11.
Abdur Razzak said, during filing of Nizami's writ petition on Thursday: "The Anticorruption Commission's approval of the charge sheet was not correct in the case against Nizami."
"In the eyes of the law this was not a proper approval. Besides the charge sheet in the case was submitted 251 days after filing the case. But legally the investigation in the case has to be completed within 60 days."
"While he was a minister Nizami acted according to the rules of business. He did not commit any crime in doing so," the lawyer argued.
The writ petition also asked the court to issue a rule nisi on the government asking it to explain why the filing of the case and its proceedings should not be declared illegal.
The ACC filed a corruption case with Tejgaon police on Sept 2 last year against 13 people including Khaleda, Coco and Nizami, for awarding Global Agro Trade Company a cargo-handling deal through misuse of power. The antigraft body later pressed charges against a total of 25 people, on May 13 this year, for causing thousands of crores in losses to the state throuhg the illegal awarding of the contract.
On July 15 the High Court stayed the trial of the case in Dhaka Special Judge's Court-3, for two months, on a writ petition filed by Khaleda Zia challenging the legality of the case and its proceedings against her
Subject: Govt challenges Nizami bail .................. 
Fri Jul 18, 2008 8:25 am
