By IANS,
Dhaka : With parliamentary elections due in December, the 20-month anti-corruption drive by Bangladesh’s military-backed caretaker government has virtually come to a halt.
The timetable of the polls, likely to be announced next week, has hastened the process under which the courts have either stayed trials or bailed out the accused for three months — till after the elections.
Home Affairs Advisor (minister) M.A. Matin told reporters Thursday that 158 corruption suspects had been granted bail and 88 cases had been stayed so far.
He also admitted that the high court’s rulings, including stay orders on proceedings and verdicts, issuance of rules and granting bail to corruption suspects, have slowed down the government’s campaign against corruption and serious crimes and also the progress of the graft cases, New Age newspaper reported Friday.
“It is not because of the weakness in charge-framing that the graft suspects are getting released… Their lawyers may have taken advantage of loopholes in the law. But we are trying hard to discharge our duty,” said Matin, a retired army major general.
Since it called off elections, imposed emergency and took office in January 2007, the government of Fakhruddin Ahmed has so far lodged 512 graft cases against 222 high-profile corruption suspects including two former prime ministers – Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia.
Of these, 152 cases were disposed of, convicting 97 people, according to official records.
Both Zia and Hasina, who served about a year each in jail, were bailed out in all the cases in the course of the last week.
This has prompted senior politician and jurist Kamal Hossain to demand an inquiry.
Supportive of the anti-graft drive, he has said the elections “cannot be free and fair if those suspected of corruption are released and allowed to participate”.
Besides the two former prime ministers, the big fish out on bail include Zia’s sons, Tarique and Arafat, who have since gone abroad for medical treatment.
Among Hasina’s political aides, her cousin Sheikh Selim and Awami League general secretary Abdul Jalil have been bailed out.
Some of the charges are serious.
One case in which Hasina received bail Thursday, for instance, alleges corruption in the purchase of eight MiG-29 aircraft from Russia when she was the prime minister (1996-2001).
Both Zia and Hasina deny the corruption charges against them.