Bangladesh ex-PM's son in court for graft hearing

Dhaka, Mar 19: A Bangladesh speedy trial court formally recorded charges for extortion today against Tareque Rahman, detained son of former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia.

''Speedy trial court judge Abdur Rouf Khan took cognizance of the case as a police officer read out charges of extortion against Tareque Rahman,'' a court registrar said.

The judge set the next hearing in the case for March 29.

Police escorted a pale-looking Tareque, wearing a light-blue T-shirt, into court through a crush of lawyers and visitors, witnesses said.

''He was brought into court amid tight security,'' one witness told Reuters.

Tareque was charged with illegally taking 10 million taka (145,000 dollar) in January from the owner of a construction firm.

''The trial will end in the next 60 days,'' a law ministry official said today. ''The speedy trial courts are mandated to complete trials within the stipulated time (two months).'' Bangladesh's army-backed interim government said, meanwhile, it might allow indoor political activity to resume in three months but would not rush into holding elections.

All political activity has been banned since authorities imposed a state of emergency and postponed parliamentary elections planned for January 22 in the wake of widespread violence.

''We are planning to lift the ban (on indoor politics),'' Mainul Husein, the administration's law and information adviser, told reporters late yesterday. But he ruled out holding elections until more reforms were in place.

An anti-corruption drive launched alongside the emergency has resulted in more than 160 arrests of senior political figures -- including Tareque, whose mother's term as prime minister expired last October.

Bangladesh is now being run by a caretaker government headed by former central bank chief Fakhruddin Ahmed.

Yesterday police formally charged Tareque, a joint ecretary-general of Khaleda's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and her heir apparent, with extortion.

Police said they were investigating more charges against Tareque, 40, for amassing wealth through corrupt means.

Yesterday Fakhruddin said he was heading a ''fully constitutional government which is accountable to the people.'' ''We are working to fulfil people's aspirations,'' he told officials during a visit to the northeastern district of Sylhet.

Reuters