A Dhaka court yesterday granted bail to former state minister for LGRD and Cooperatives Ziaul Haq Zia and former BNP lawmaker AKM Fazlul Haque Milon in two separate cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
Zia was accused of embezzlement of Tk 12.97 lakh from the public coffer while Milon was accused of amassing wealth worth Tk 86 lakh illegally and concealing wealth information to the ACC.
Judge ANM Bashir Ullah of the Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court granted bail to Zia and Milon after their lawyers submitted bail petitions on different grounds.
Zia who was arrested on February 18, was produced before the court yesterday while Milon surrendered and sought bail.
The judge granted bail to Zia upon a bond of Tk 25,000 with two guarantors while Milon upon a bond of Tk 50,000 with two guarantors.
Moving the bail petitions, lawyers told the court that the charges brought against their clients were false and fabricated. So, they prayed for bail. But the prosecution opposed the bail petitions. Moreover, Milon was granted bail from the High Court till submission of the police report.
The court issued an arrest warrant against Zia's son Mashfiqul Haq Joy and fixed March 12 for next hearing of the case.
ACC Assistant Director Monzur Alam, also the investigation officer (IO) of the case, submitted the charge sheet to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's (CMM) Court of Dhaka on January 14 this year showing 12 people as prosecution witnesses.
According to the prosecution, it was alleged that Zia, while a minister, forced all car drivers of the Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (Wasa) to buy oil from his son Joy's (MD) M/S Royal Filling Station at Mahakhali in the city that made a dent in the public money amounting to Tk 12,97,178 and swelled the pockets of Zia and his son.
Earlier, Zia was convicted for 31 years imprisonment on different charges filed for graft, cheating and tax evasion.
CASE AGAINST MILON
On January 22, ACC Assistant Director Rafiqul Islam, also the IO of the case, submitted the charge sheet to the CMM's Court, showing 23 people as prosecution witnesses.
In the charge sheet, the IO said that Milon had amassed wealth worth Tk 86,15,777 through illegal means and concealed wealth information of Tk 24,8,508 to the ACC.
On September 18 last year, the ACC filed the case with Ramna Police Station against Milon.