BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia will be released from jail for six months suspending her sentences upon two conditions.
Law Minister Anisul Huq on Tuesday came up with the announcement at a press conference at his Gulshan office.
The conditions are receiving treatment staying at her Gulshan residence and not leaving the country.
The Law Minister said that the government is releasing Khaleda on humanitarian ground and considering her age.
‘The government has decided to release her after staying her sentences under Section 401 (1) of the Code of the Criminal Procedure showing its generosity because of her age and on humanitarian grounds,’ the minister told reporters at a sudden press briefing at his political office in Banani in the capital.
‘She will take treatment remaining at home,’ he said.
He said that the home minister will now issue notification for her release.
Asked how she will receive treatment at her house, he said.‘It’s not been mentioned in the condition that she would not be able to receive treatment at hospital. Her admission to hospital will depend on her condition. That’s why we mentioned she’ll receive treatment at her home.’
He further said if Khaleda needs to go to hospital, then she will be receiving treatment at the country’s most standard hospital.
He said the BNP chief will not be allowed to go abroad for treatment. ‘Sending anyone abroad under the current situation means pushing him/her to commit suicide.’
Meanwhile, Khaleda Zia’s sister Selima Islam thanked the government for taking a positive decision to release the BNP chief.
She said they will go to the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) to bring Khaleda to her house when the government informs them about the completion of all the processes.
Selima said they will take decision about Khaleda’s treatment later in consultation with the government.
Meanwhile, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the worry of the country’s people about Khaleda’s health condition will be eased with her relase from the prison.
Asked whether they consider the decision a positive one, he said they will make comment about it after reviewing the conditions given for Khaleda’s release.
Meanwhile, a source at the Home Ministry said the Law Ministry’s recommendation about the BNP chairperson’s release reached the Home Ministry by 5pm.
Khaleda Zia has been in jail since she was convicted in the Zia Orphanage Trust case on February 8, 2018.
She was found guilty in another case later the same year, though her party claims both cases are politically motivated.
She has been receiving treatment at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) since April 1 last year.
