The High Court has sought relevant documents, including birth registration and academic qualification certificates, of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia to determine her ‘genuine’ date of birth. The court asked the authorities concerned to provide the documents in 60 days.
The virtual HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Sardar Md Rashed Jahangir issued the order on Sunday after hearing of a writ petition filed challenging the legality of celebrating birthday by Khaleda Zia on August 15.
Supreme Court lawyer Mamunur Rashid on May 31 filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the inaction of the defendants in taking action against Khaleda Zia over her multiple birth dates.
Advocate Nahid Sultana Juthi moved for the petitioner in the High Court, while Deputy Attorney General Bipul Bagmar represented the state and Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon moved for Khaleda Zia.
Advocate Nahid Sultana Juthi said that the application sought a ruling on why Khaleda Zia will not be punished for celebrating her birthday on August 15. Besides, instructions were also sought to submit all the documents of Khaleda Zia’s educational qualifications and birth registration to the High Court.
In response to the application, the HC also issued a rule asking the respondents to show causes why their inaction to prosecute Khaleda Zia under relevant law for celebrating her birthday on different dates deliberately to malign and undermine the solemnity of National Mourning Day, which is observed on August 15, should not be declared illegal.
Secretary of Home Ministry, Secretary of Health Ministry, Inspector General of Police (IGP), commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), Officer-in-Charge of Gulshan Police Station, and Khaleda Zia were made respondents to the rule.
The petitioner submitted that it is a matter of great distress for the nation that Khaleda Zia has mentioned and used her date of birth on August 15 in 1946 in the current passport with an ulterior motive -- to malign the National Mourning Day when the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was brutally killed with his family members in 1975.
Also, Khaleda Zia’s date of birth is September 5 in 1946 according to her SSC certificate; August 4 in 1944 according to her marriage registration certificate; August 5 in 1946 according to her machine-readable passport; and May 8 in 1946 according to her Covid-19 test report, the petitioner said in the petition.
AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon challenged the admissibility of the writ petition on the grounds, saying that the writ petition has been filed in order to achieve political gains. He said that thousands of people including Khaleda Zia were born on August 15 and it is not the work of the HC to deal with such a matter involving a birthday.
