Fresh graft charges brought against Bangladeshi ex-PM

Dhaka: New graft charges have been brought detained former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia, accusing her of embezzling money from an orphanage.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed a case accusing Khaleda, her detained elder son and political heir Tareque Rahman and five others of embezzling 21 million taka ($306,480), officials said.

"We have filed the case at Dhaka's Ramna police station with sufficient evidence to substantiate the charges," a senior ACC official told reporters.

Khaleda's party has denied the charges. An official from her party renewed demands for the immediate and unconditional release of Khaleda and her two ailing sons from jail.