Bangladesh High Court Thursday sentenced former president Hussain Mohammad Ershad two years in jail in a Japanese boat purchase scam case.

A single-bench with Justice Faisal Mahmud Faizee passed the order. The High Court upheld the lower court's judgment sentencing him for three years but commuted the sentence by one year, which means he will have to suffer a jail term for two years.

Ershad, who captured power in a bloodless coup in 1982 and ruled the country for nearly nine years with iron hand, was found guilty of misappropriating 330 million Taka (about 4.71 million U. S. dollars) in a shady deal for buying 520 Japanese boats and 10 water purification machines for relief works.

On July 6, 1995, a Divisional Special Sessions Judge's court found Ershad guilty and sentenced him for three years imprisonment in the case.

His lawyer Barrister Azmalul Hossain said they would go to Supreme Court to appeal against the High Court's order. But if the Supreme Court upholds this order, Ershad, chairman of Jatiya Party, will not be eligible for contesting in the general elections slated for January 23 next year.

According to the Bangladesh Constitution, a person shall be disqualified for election to become member of parliament who has been on conviction for a criminal offense involving moral turpitude, sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years.

Ershad's supporters assembled outside the High Court chanting slogans against the court judgment. Earlier, the deposed President served six years in jail in 1990s in three cases of possessing illegal arms and corruption.

Source: Xinhua