The Appellate Division of Bangladesh Supreme Court has allowed Grameen Telecom officials including Nobel laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus to `leave to appeal` to the money laundering case which was filed by the ACC Deputy Director of the city’s Gulshan zone Anwar on 30th May last year .
A four-judge Appellate Division Bench headed by the chief justice Syed Refat Ahmed granted the order on Monday. The apex court ordered to submit the summary of the appeal and fixed the date of hearing on November 19.
Senior lawyer Abdullah-al-Mamun appeared for Muhammad Yunus while Attorney General Md. Asaduzzaman heard on behalf of the state.
According to the case sources, apart from Dr. Muhammad Yunus, the other six appellants in this case are Grameen Telecom Managing Director Nazmul Islam, Director Ashraful Hasan, Nazneen Sultana, Shahjahan, Noorjahan Begum and SM Hajjatul Islam Latifi.
Professor Dr. Yunus`s lawyer, Barrister Abdullah Al Mamun, told reporters that he applied to the judicial court to cancel (discharge) the proceedings of the case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. After rejecting our application, the charge was framed on June 12 and the date of commencement of testimony was fixed on July 15. We appeal to the High Court against the dismissal of our discharge petition.
He said that on July 24, the High Court rejected the application brought to cancel the proceedings of this case. Also, the special judge of Dhaka directed the Court-4 to complete the trial of this case within one year. We file leave to appeal against this order within the statutory period on three grounds.
He said that at one stage the case was scheduled for hearing on August 5 in the lower court. The previous government fell on that day in the anti-discrimination student revolution and mass uprising. The proceedings of the judicial court were not conducted that day. The next day we went to court. The court fixed September 5 as the date for taking evidence. But without informing us, ACC applied to withdraw the case and the court granted it.
Barrister Mamun said the withdrawal of the case was illegal and not done legally. Moreover, Nobel laureate Dr. Yunus is the chief adviser to the interim government so it can be assumed that there is influence here. We will deal with this case according to law. It is our constitutional right. He said, the Appellate Division today granted us leave to appeal on three grounds.
