Former state minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak told a Dhaka court on Sunday that he had been placed on a total of 99 days of remand in 98 cases and that trials in all of those cases were now underway.
Palak made the statement after being produced before the Dhaka Special Judge Court-4 in connection with the murder case of truck driver Md Hossain, which is linked to the July student-mass uprising.
During the hearing, Palak sought the court’s permission to meet his lawyers at least twice every two weeks to discuss matters related to his cases, saying, “At present, I am allowed to meet my family for only 30 minutes every 15 days.”
After hearing his submission, the court directed the prison authorities to take the necessary steps in accordance with the Jail Code, said defence lawyer Farzana Yasmin Rakhi.
Meanwhile, the hearing on the framing of charges in the truck driver murder case filed with Mohammadpur police station against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, Palak, and 32 others has been deferred.
Judge Robiul Alam of Dhaka Special Judge Court-4 fixed 13 August for the next hearing.
Defence lawyer Farzana Yasmin said the prosecution sought a deferment because one of the accused, Forkan, was not present before the court. The defence also sought time, after which the court accepted both petitions and fixed the new date.
