The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday approved the charge sheet in a case against BNP’s Senior Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman’s mother-in-law Syeda Iqbal Mand Banu filed for not submitting wealth statement as asked by the commission.
The decision was made after Investigation Officer Abdus Sattar Sarker, an ACC deputy director, recommended filing of the charge sheet, a competent source told the Dhaka Tribune.
The case was filed with Ramna police on January 30, 2014. Syeda Iqbal was served notice on January 25, 2012 to submit her wealth statement to the commission. But she acquired a stay order from the High Court. After the ACC challenged the High Court order, the Appellate Division stayed the order on September 26, 2013.
Following the order, the ACC is free to collect her wealth statement, particularly to investigate the wealth of Tarique Rahman.
However, without complying with the court order and the commission’s notice, she appealed for fresh inquiry. In response, the ACC said Syeda Iqbal could file an objection at the court against the commission’s move.
Tarique’s employee under watch
The commission on January 11 sent a letter to the additional inspector general of Special Branch (SB) for imposing a bar on former employee of Hawa Bhaban Samsujjoha Farhad and his wife Rojina Joha from leaving the country.
Later the SB informed the matter to the immigration police and the land port authorities providing them with their passport numbers, said a high official of the commission.
The commission took the decision after receiving allegation that Samsujjoha is the main financier of Tarique, who has been staying in the UK since 2008, and that he sends money to Tarique regularly through Hundi (unauthorised channel).
The commission has proof that Tarique is the actual owner of the huge assets and bank accounts that Samsujjoha owns. The assets worth nearly Tk100 crore. According to the ACC, Samsujjoha owns around 10 flats and houses in the capital’s Dhanmondi, Mohammadpur, Mirpur, Rupnagar and Purbachal areas. He also owns a rice mill, fish farms and brick fields apart from fixed deposit at different banks.
ACC Commissioner M Sahabuddin said: “The commission has received allegation that a former employee of the Hawa Bhaban regularly sends money to Tarique through Hundi. The commission has already started inquiry in this regard.”
The commission decided to launch an inquiry against Tarique on January 6 this year after questions raised over his income and expenditure.
An official of the commission, seeking anonymity, said: “Actually Tarique keeps his assets in the name of his employee to save his illegal wealth. This employee usually sends him money to bear the expenses in London.”