The law ministry has recommended extending the suspension of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s jail term by another six months in two graft cases.
Law Minister Anisul Huq on Wednesday said they suggested keeping the conditions for the suspended sentence unchanged, reports bdnews24.com.
The documents Khaleda used in her appeal for the extension were sent back to the home ministry.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said the documents did not reach the home ministry until Wednesday afternoon.
Officials said a final decision on Khaleda’s appeal is unlikely to be made before the next workday on Sunday.
The rules require the law ministry to forward its opinion to the home ministry, which will then send it to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for final approval.
However, the home ministry is likely to have the final say on the matter, according to Anisul. "I don't think it [the application] will reach the prime minister. This is because the opinion we gave last time was not sent to the prime minister.”
This is the fifth time that an application has been made for a stay on Khaleda's sentence. In September last year, the government decided to extend the suspension of the sentence by six months, allowing her to stay out of jail until Mar 24.
Khaleda had been imprisoned after being sentenced in a case registered by the Anti-Corruption Commission in 2018. In March 2020, she was released on probation under the conditions that the 76-year-old does not leave the country and that she undergoes treatment at her home in Dhaka.
The BNP chairperson has faced numerous health issues since then. On Feb 1 this year, Khaleda returned to her Gulshan residence after an 81-day stay at Evercare Hospital. She has been suffering from diabetes, arthritis, liver disease and other health complications.
On Nov 13, she received treatment at the Critical Care Unit of the hospital for liver cirrhosis.
Khaleda’s family members have applied multiple times to take her abroad for treatment. But the authorities rejected their pleas every time, citing the conditions of her release from jail.