Sayeed Khokon, the former mayor of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC), has alleged that his successor Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh has instigated the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to launch an investigation and start cases against him and his family members.
Addressing a press conference at the National Press Club in Dhaka on Tuesday morning, Khokon said that he had no objections to any inquiry by the ACC but demanded that he and his family members be allowed access to their accounts, which hold a sum Tk76,272,603.
“The ACC did not give my family any notice and has frozen these accounts without giving us a chance to defend ourselves,” he said.
Claiming that Taposh was resorting to “malicious tactics” to cover up his own “boundless inadequacy,” the former mayor said he would take a stand against the false allegations, and if need be, fight against the injustice with people of Dhaka city by his side.
He also addressed Taposh, saying: "People know how many votes you got when you were elected. The people of Dhaka city can see what you are doing.”
The allegations
On Sunday, a Dhaka court ordered authorities to freeze eight bank accounts of Sayeed Khokon's businesses and three of his family members.
Senior Special Judge KM Emrul Kayesh passed the order after accepting a petition submitted by ACC Deputy Director Jalal Uddin Ahmed, also the investigation officer in the case.
The three others accused in the case are Khokon’s wife Farhana Alam, mother Fatema Hanif and sister Shahana Hanif.
The petition said that a large amount of money was transacted through the eight accounts, thus it was imperative to block the accounts immediately to ensure that no money is withdrawn, handed over or transferred until a proper investigation is carried out.
The ACC official further alleged that the accused were trying to transfer money from those accounts.
Of the accounts, three are Khokon’s business accounts. One of the accounts belongs to his mother Fatema, and two each to his sister Shahana and wife Farhana.
Khokon is the son of late Mohammad Hanif, the first elected mayor of undivided Dhaka City Corporation. A member of the Awami League’s Central Working Committee, Khokon worked as the DSCC mayor from April 2015 to May 2020.
He had also sought the ruling party’s nomination for the DSCC mayoral elections last year, but the party picked former Dhaka 10 MP Taposh, the son of Awami Jubo League founder Sheikh Fazlul Haq Mani.
On December 29 last year, Khokon and six others were sued by a businessman on charges of embezzlement of around Tk35 crore.
Md Delwar Hossain, president of the Businessmen and Owners’ Association of Fulbaria City Supermarket-2 in Gulistan, had filed the case with a Dhaka court. The Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) is investigating the case.
