Morshed Khan, Manju get HC bail

The High Court (HC) yesterday granted ad-interim bail to former foreign minister M Morshed Khan and to former communications minister Anwar Hossain Manju in three separate cases.
Morshed was granted bail in a case filed against him on charge of amassing illegal wealth and concealing information about it to the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC).
Manju got bail in two bribery cases.
They were earlier sentenced to imprisonments of different terms in these cases. Both of them are now behind bars.
A division bench of the HC comprising Justice MA Wahhab Miah and Justice M Marzi-ul-Huq granted them bail upon separate appeals filed by them against the sentence and conviction awarded them by trial courts.
The bails will remain valid until the disposal of their appeals pending with the HC.
A special court on August 4, last year, sentenced Morshed Khan to 13 years in jail for amassing illegal wealth and concealing information about it.
The two bribery cases against Manju were filed with Shahbagh and Dhanmondi police stations in Dhaka on July 25, 2007. The special courts sentenced him to seven years in jail in each of the two bribery cases.
In compliance with the recent Supreme Court orders, Morshed and Manju surrendered to the lower courts on May 6 and 10 respectively. The courts sent them to jail for serving the sentences denying their bail prayers.
Earlier, the High Court refused to grant bails to a dozen bigwig fugitive convicts as they sought bails in corruption cases after surrendering.
Barrister Rafique-Ul Huq appeared for the petitioners, while Deputy Attorney General SM Abdul Mobin stood for the government.