Haji Salim gets bail in corruption case
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has granted bail to Awami League lawmaker Haji Mohammad Salim in a corruption case.
He was sentenced to jail for 10 years upon being convicted of graft charges brought by the Anti-Corruption Commission.
The five-member appellate bench headed by Chief Justice Hasan Faiz Siddiqui passed the order on Tuesday (6 December).
At the same time, Haji Mohammad Salim has been allowed to appeal against the 10-year sentence.
Senior lawyer Syed Ahmed Raza moved for Haji Selim's bail plea and Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan appeared for the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
According to Haji's lawyer, the bail was granted until the appeal application is disposed of. There remain no obstacles to Haji Selim's release as there is no other case against him, he told media.
Earlier on 6 June, the chamber judge of the Supreme Court denied the bail plea of Haji Selim who at the time was in a prison cell at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) for treatment.
In 2007, ACC filed a case against Haji Salim with Lalbagh Police Station for accumulating wealth illegally. On 27 April 2008, a Dhaka court sentenced him to 13 years in jail and fined Tk20 lakh. Salim moved the High Court (HC) against the verdict.
In 2011, the court overturned his sentence but the ACC appealed against the verdict.
