Ershad appeared in person before an assistant registrar of the Supreme Court to file the affidavit. Meanwhile, hearing on the writ petition started in the High Court.

The High Court bench comprising Justice Mozammel Hossain and Justice Farid Ahmed heard submission from advocate MA Malek, an amicus-curie of the case.

Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (Blast) on March 23 filed the writ petition in the High Court to realise the rest of the total amount of money fined by the Supreme Court against Ershad in the much-talked-about Janata Tower corruption case.

The same bench of the High Court appointed three senior lawyers -- former attorney generals Mahmud-ul Islam and AF Hasan Ariff, and advocate MA Malek - as amicus-curies for more interpretation of the concerned laws regarding this case and also fixed April 4 for next hearing on the petition.

The hearing on the case was deferred, on April 4, for one week following filing of a time prayer by Ershad.

On June 7, 1993, the Additional District and Session Judge of Dhaka punished Ershad with seven years of imprisonment in the Janata Tower corruption case.

As Ershad had made an appeal against the verdict in the higher court, the High Court awarded him five years of imprisonment and a fine of Tk 54,870,800 as fixed by RAJUK calculated on the basis of the misappropriated money.

The Supreme Court in its judgment revised the High Court order reducing the imprisonment period to three years and six months.

Ershad suffered imprisonment of three years and three months, and paid Tk 27,435,400.

The Special Divisional Judge of Dhaka, on February 28, 2001, exempted Ershad from suffering the rest of three months of imprisonment and paying the remaining money.

The writ petition, filed by advocate MA Mannan on behalf of the Blast, also challenged the jurisdiction of the Special Division Judge of exempting Ershad from paying the total amount of the fine in the case.