A Dhaka special court is scheduled to pronounce its judgement on Thursday in Zia Orphanage Trust graft case.

Dhaka special judge court-5 set Thursday to pass its verdict in the case after conclusion of arguments from both prosecution and defence on January 25, reports the BSS.

The ACC filed the Zia Orphanage Trust graft case on July 3, 2008 with Ramna Police Station accusing Khaleda, her eldest son Tarique Rahman, who is now living in the UK after securing bail, and four others for misappropriating over 2.10 crore that came as grants from a foreign bank for orphans, reports the UNB.

The anti-graft body lodged Zia Charitable Trust graft case against BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia and three others with Tejgaon Police Station on August 8, 2011, for embezzling Taka 31.5 million from the trust.

The other accused are Khaleda’s former political secretary Haris Chowdhury, then personal secretary to Haris and Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) director Ziaul Islam Munna and Monirul Islam Khan, then personal secretary of Dhaka City Corporation Mayor Sadek Hossain Khoka.

The prosecution in their arguments pleaded for seven-year imprisonment for the BNP chief, saying they have been able to prove the case against Khaleda and her co-accused beyond any reasonable doubt.

‘Khaleda Zia formed the trust by misusing the power during her tenure as Prime Minister. She even collected money from illegal sources. She and her cohorts didn’t follow the rules and regulations of forming a trust. They have violated the provisions of Trust Act,’ ACC counsel Mosharraf Hossain Kazal said in his arguments.

‘Khaleda had formed a paper-trust in name of her late husband. She made herself and her two sons the trustees of that trust,’ the ACC counsel added.

The accused were indicted in the cases on March 19, 2014.