DHAKA: Bangladesh's 72-year-old opposition leader Khaleda Zia was granted bail on corruption charges Wednesday after her attorneys argued her health was at risk, paving the way for her to be released from prison.
Zia was imprisoned in February after being accused of embezzling money meant for an orphanage, an allegation she said was politically motivated.
Bangladesh has for years been locked in an epic showdown between Zia, who has served as prime minister thrice, and her arch-rival, current leader Sheikh Hasina.
In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court upheld a decrease courtroom's decision to grant Zia bail whilst she appeals in opposition to the five-year prison time period, her attorney Joynal Abedin told AFP.
She faces a number of different charges and it was no longer straight away clear when she would be released from the special prison in the capital Dhaka where she is the only inmate.
Zia's attorneys said they told the courtroom that she faced critical health risks if kept in prison and that she would be handled at a top personal sanatorium as soon as she is released.
"She has become very sick due to long solitary confinement," Abedin said, adding that Zia suffers from a neurological problem, arthritis and night-time fever.
The Supreme Court had previous suspended the decrease courtroom's decision to grant Zia bail, prompting her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to sentence the move as a part of a campaign by way of Hasina to silence the opposition ahead of looming nationwide elections.
Zia faces more than 30 different inquiries related to violence and corruption.
Abedin said she was formally thought to be under arrest in a minimum of six different cases and must get bail for each one, which might take days or even weeks. However, the Supreme Court ruling is prone to have an influence on those court cases.
"We hope she will be released shortly. These cases do not have merit at all. These are all politically motivated cases," Abedin said.
Mohammad Shamsuzzaman, an orthopaedic specialist at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, visited Zia closing month as a part of a four-member executive workforce.
He said her situation was no longer critical however that she had developed again ache and her arthritis had worsened in prison.
"She has pain in hands and legs. She couldn't walk 50 metres without assistance," he told AFP.
Violence erupted in primary cities across Bangladesh after the responsible verdict in opposition to the BNP leader was handed down in February, together with her supporters clashing with police and activists from the ruling birthday celebration.
Zia, who entered politics in the 1980s after her military dictator husband was assassinated in a failed coup, has consistently pushed aside the fees as politically motivated.
Her birthday celebration boycotted 2014 nationwide elections in which Hasina was re-elected however is anticipated to contest the brand new polls due in December.
In March a file by way of German think-tank the Bertelsmann Foundation listed Bangladesh as a brand new autocracy, raising doubts in regards to the credibility of the country's elections. The ruling Awami League has rejected the assertion.
Zia and her son have been detained by way of an army-backed executive in 2007 and spent a 12 months and a half in detention pending trials for alleged corruption.
Zia was imprisoned in February after being accused of embezzling money meant for an orphanage, an allegation she said was politically motivated.
Bangladesh has for years been locked in an epic showdown between Zia, who has served as prime minister thrice, and her arch-rival, current leader Sheikh Hasina.
In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court upheld a decrease courtroom's decision to grant Zia bail whilst she appeals in opposition to the five-year prison time period, her attorney Joynal Abedin told AFP.
She faces a number of different charges and it was no longer straight away clear when she would be released from the special prison in the capital Dhaka where she is the only inmate.
Zia's attorneys said they told the courtroom that she faced critical health risks if kept in prison and that she would be handled at a top personal sanatorium as soon as she is released.
"She has become very sick due to long solitary confinement," Abedin said, adding that Zia suffers from a neurological problem, arthritis and night-time fever.
The Supreme Court had previous suspended the decrease courtroom's decision to grant Zia bail, prompting her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to sentence the move as a part of a campaign by way of Hasina to silence the opposition ahead of looming nationwide elections.
Zia faces more than 30 different inquiries related to violence and corruption.
Abedin said she was formally thought to be under arrest in a minimum of six different cases and must get bail for each one, which might take days or even weeks. However, the Supreme Court ruling is prone to have an influence on those court cases.
"We hope she will be released shortly. These cases do not have merit at all. These are all politically motivated cases," Abedin said.
Mohammad Shamsuzzaman, an orthopaedic specialist at Dhaka Medical College Hospital, visited Zia closing month as a part of a four-member executive workforce.
He said her situation was no longer critical however that she had developed again ache and her arthritis had worsened in prison.
"She has pain in hands and legs. She couldn't walk 50 metres without assistance," he told AFP.
Violence erupted in primary cities across Bangladesh after the responsible verdict in opposition to the BNP leader was handed down in February, together with her supporters clashing with police and activists from the ruling birthday celebration.
Zia, who entered politics in the 1980s after her military dictator husband was assassinated in a failed coup, has consistently pushed aside the fees as politically motivated.
Her birthday celebration boycotted 2014 nationwide elections in which Hasina was re-elected however is anticipated to contest the brand new polls due in December.
In March a file by way of German think-tank the Bertelsmann Foundation listed Bangladesh as a brand new autocracy, raising doubts in regards to the credibility of the country's elections. The ruling Awami League has rejected the assertion.
Zia and her son have been detained by way of an army-backed executive in 2007 and spent a 12 months and a half in detention pending trials for alleged corruption.
Bangladesh opposition leader Khaleda Zia granted bail
![Bangladesh opposition leader Khaleda Zia granted bail]()
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May 16, 2018
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