A vacation bench of the High Court (HC) yesterday sent back two bail petitions filed on behalf of Awami League President Sheikh Hasina in the Niko and barge-mount power plant corruption cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
Hasina's counsel said that the petitions would be submitted to another bench for hearing on September 29.
Meanwhile, the HC bench comprising Justice AKM Fazlur Rahman and Justice Sheikh Abdul Awal yesterday told the petitioners' counsel that it did not have the jurisdiction to hear the petitions filed on Monday.
Hasina's counsel barrister Rafique-ul Huq told The Daily Star that they had wrongly filed the bail petitions on behalf of Sheikh Hasina with the HC bench of Justice AKM Fazlur Rahman and Justice Sheikh Abdul Awal, which had no jurisdiction to hear the petitions.
"We took back the bail petitions from this bench of the High Court and met with the chief justice to request him to constitute another bench for hearing these petitions. The chief justice assured us that he would provide jurisdiction to the bench of Justice Md Anwarul Haque and Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury in this regard. We will submit the petitions to this bench for hearing on September 29," he said.
Another counsel for Hasina, barrister Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh said that the hearing of the petition filed on behalf of Sheikh Hasina seeking bail in the extortion case filed by Noor Ali would be held today.
Earlier on July 7, the HC had stayed for two months all proceedings against Hasina in connection with the two cases and issued separate rules on the government and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to explain why the cases should not be quashed.
ACC Deputy Director Sabbir Hasan filed the barge-mount power plant case with Tejgaon Police Station on September 2 last year, accusing Hasina and six other people of helping Wartsila Power Development Ltd Consortium and its two local partners win a power-plant deal depriving the lowest bidder.
The ACC official filed the other case with Tejgaon Police Station on December 9 the same year, accusing the AL chief and six others of corruption and abuse of power while awarding three abandoned gas fields to Canadian energy company Niko Resources Ltd, causing a loss of Tk 13.6 crore to the state exchequer.