BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and seven others have been acquitted in the Niko corruption case. The verdict was announced by Judge Md. Rabiul Alam of Dhaka’s Special Judge Court-4 on Wednesday morning. Khaleda Zia, currently undergoing medical treatment in London, was represented in court by her lawyer Mohammad Ziauddin Zia.

In his observation, the judge stated that the case was politically motivated to harass the accused. The other defendants acquitted include Giasuddin Al Mamun, a close associate of BNP Acting Chairperson Tarique Rahman; former Energy Ministry acting secretary Khondaker Shahidul Islam; former Dhaka Club president Selim Bhuiyan; former senior assistant secretary CM Yusuf Hossain; former principal secretary Kamal Uddin Siddiqui; former BAPEX general manager Mir Moynul Haque; and former president of Niko Resources (Bangladesh) Ltd., Kashem Sharif.

The case, filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on December 9, 2007, alleged that an opaque agreement with Canadian company Niko caused significant financial losses to the state, amounting to approximately Tk 13,777 crore. The ACC accused the defendants of misusing power to declare three gas fields abandoned and hand them over to Niko. The charge sheet was submitted on May 5, 2008, against 11 individuals, including Khaleda Zia. The trial court framed charges on March 19, 2023, and 39 out of 68 witnesses testified during the proceedings. Today’s verdict concluded the case after arguments ended on February 13.