The High Court on Sunday directed the lower court concerned to complete the trial proceedings as early as possible in the corruption case filed against BNP's acting chairman Tarique Rahman and his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman during the caretaker government in 2007.

The court also declared Tarique and Zubaida as fugitives rejecting their writ petitions challenging the initiation and filing of the Tk 4.82 crore corruption case.

The bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo pronounced the verdict today.

Earlier, the court heard arguments on whether Tarique and Zubaida, who have been living in London since 2008, are fugitives in the case.

The chief metropolitan magistrate of Dhaka has been asked to send the record of the case to the Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court in Dhaka in 10 days.

On September 26, 2007, the ACC filed the case with Kafrul Police Station against Tarique Rahman, his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman, and her mother Iqbal Mand Banu for amassing assets worth Tk 4.82 crore through illegal means and concealing information in their wealth statement.