Investigators in India are taking a close look at links between an Indian ponzi scam and a Bangladeshi bank being investigated here for ties to terrorist funding.
The Times of India reports that Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited was in the spotlight for laundering money for Saradha Group, which is now under investigation for operating a ponzi scheme and siphoning money out of India.
Bangladeshi investigators have been trying to determine if Saradha funds managed to find their way to banned militant outfits like Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), as Indian investigators were investigating whether the funds were routed through Islami Bank.
Investigators in India were attempting to follow the money trail as media reports ask whether a portion of Saradha deposits was parked in the Bangladeshi bank and why.
“There are indications that some top officials of the Islami Bank have links with people in Kolkata who have subsequent links with the Saradha scam. The name of this bank came up while trying to trace the money trail. There are some financial institutions operated by this bank that are also being probed by the home ministry in Bangladesh for funding in terror activities. The government of Bangladesh had sought a report from the Islami Bank on how it disbursed funds,” a source in India’s enforcement directorate said.
There is suspicion that some of Islami Bank’s customers may appear on international blacklists, the Times of India reported.
It said funds may have been disbursed to suspect individuals or organisations as a form of what the newspaper described as “corporate zakat,” adding that India might seek Bangladeshi assistance in determining whether the bank invested in the Gulf on behalf of a client.
“The key to terrorism is funds. The role of financial institutions, such as the Islami Bank, was suspect for quite some time now. The global intelligence fraternity has been trying to trace the source of money that flows into the hands of terrorists. Even the US Senate Committee has accused the Islami Bank of funding terror outfits. The bank is allegedly backed by the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh which has established links to the JMB. It has been alleged that the present chairman was once a leader of al-Badr and the former vice-chairman is being tried for his alleged involvement in war crimes in Bangladesh,” a source in India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) said.