British lawyer Lord Alex Carlile, who the BNP has appointed to advise party chief Khaleda Zia’s counsels on her cases, says he will be coming to Delhi this week and hold a press conference.

In a text message to Bangla Tribune on Tuesday, he said that the media briefing has been scheduled for Thursday (Jul 12). “Will let you know the details later,” reads the SMS.

His confirmation came amid reports in Bangladeshi media over the uncertainty of his India visit.

Earlier it was announced that Carlile’s media call will be held on Jul 13 at Foreign Correspondents’ Club (FCC) in Delhi.

FCC authorities confirmed that Lord Carlile’s associates in Delhi tentatively booked their premises for that day, but did not finalise it.

The FCC said that Jul 13 is not available anymore due to a programme to be attended by the South Korean envoy in Delhi.

The club authorities, however, brushed aside ‘political pressure’, as suggested by the media, behind cancelling the tentative booking.

Amid the development, Lord Carlile’s Delhi-based associates have rescheduled the media a briefing a day earlier and now looking for an alternative venue.

Lord Carlile announced last week that he will be travelling to Delhi, where he will brief the media on how the Bangladesh government used politically motivated false charges to shut Khaleda Zia out of the general election.

Carlile said he preferred to do it in Dhaka but the Bangladesh authorities have kept his visa application pending.

In March this year, the BNP announced the appointment of Lord Carlile for the cases against the jailed party chief.

Since then, Lord Carlile has given interviews to several media outlets over Khaleda Zia but is yet to get a Bangladeshi visa to represent his client in court.