Sheikh Hasina expected to stand trial

Detained former Bangladesh premier is to appear before a court for alleged bribery involving Taka three crore.

Detained former Bangladesh Prime Minister and Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina is to appear before a court in Dhaka as her trial for alleged bribery involving Taka three crore is set to be started on Monday.

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Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Azizul Hoque set the date for indicting Hasina and two other co-accused, her expatriate younger sister Sheikh Rehana and cousin and former health minister Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim.

Due to "safety reasons", the court moved to its makeshift premises at the Parliament complex, where Hasina has been kept turning a building into a temporary sub-jail.

The court decision came as police filed the charge sheet against Hasina, Rehana and Selim after investigations on a case filed by Bangladeshi businessmen Azam Jahangir Chowdhury on June 13.

Chowdhury alleged that Hasina and the two others forced him to pay Taka 2.99 crore in bribes in return for allowing him to build a power plant in suburban Naraynganj while her Awami League was in power in 1996-2001.

Police formally charged Hasina with extortion on July 24 after her arrest on July 16.