Indictment Hearing in Two Cases against Khaleda on Oct 14

A Dhaka court set the date for the charge framing hearing in two cases filed against BNP chief Begum Khaleda Zia on grounds of celebrating a phony birthday on National Mourning Day and stigmatizing the Liberation War by rehabilitating anti-liberation forces on Thursday.

The indictment hearing was scheduled for today, but Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Asaduzzaman Noor rescheduled it to allow the defense to file a time plea.

Advocate Masud Ahmed Talukder, Khaleda Zia's lawyer, filed the time plea, claiming that his client was unable to attend in court owing to sickness. On August 30, 2016, journalist Gazi Jahirul Islam filed a false birthday complaint against Khaleda.

According to the complaint, Khaleda has been celebrating her phony birthday on August 15, the anniversary of the martyrdom of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members, since 1996. She's doing it on purpose in order to defame Bangabandhu.

The complainant also included copies of other newspaper articles on Khaleda's birthday, as well as copies of her passport, marriage certificate, and mark sheets, all of which show Khaleda's birthdate is on a different day than August 15.

The other case was filed on November 3, 2016, by Jananetri Parishad President AB Siddiqui against Khaleda Zia and her late husband Ziaur Rahman for stigmatizing the Liberation War by rehabilitating anti-Liberation War militants.

The BNP head is out on bail in both instances, having been granted bail by Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge KM Imrul Qayesh on July 31, 2018.