TDS Desk:

Over the past eight months the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has seized large amounts of property of politicians, businesspersons and government officials who have been accused of corruption. The property includes houses, flats, commercial establishments and land.

According to ACC sources, from July to February this year the court has issued 74 orders to seize various property based on appeals by the commission. Following these orders, around 192 acres of land, 28 buildings, 38 flats and 15 plots of land have been seized. There are also 23 vehicles and three ships on the list of seized assets.

The value of the assets at home and abroad, under orders to be seized, totals around Tk 100 billion (Tk 10,000 crore), according to ACC officials.

ACC became more active in tackling corruption after Awami League was ousted from power in the mass uprising of July on 5 August. The commission, allegedly, did not display much activity during Awami League’s tenure. Investigations were typically initiated against individuals with whom the government was displeased or whose corruption had been extensively exposed by the media.

The chairman of ACC appointed during the Awami League rule, Mohammad Moinuddin Abdullah, along with commissioner (investigation) Md. Zahurul Haque and commissioner (inquiry) Mosammat Asiya Khatun, resigned on 29 October. Following the political shift, they demonstrated a degree of activity during their remaining time in office. ACC officials say this was just a superficial show of activity.

On 10 December this year, ACC appointed senior secretary Mohammad Abdul Momen as chairman of ACC. Miah Muhammad Ali Akbar Siddiqui and Brigadier General (retd) Hafiz Ahsan Farid were appointed as commissioners. ACC is regularly making appeals for the seizure of assets and the court is issuing orders accordingly.

The ACC could not provide any cohesive list of persons whose property has been seized. However, the court orders issued at various times appear in the news media. Several names are also revealed by ACC sources.

Members of the Sheikh family are on the list whose assets have been seized. On 30 April the court ordered the seizure of land and plots belonging to Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy and daughter Saima Wazed Putul, sister Sheikh Rehana and her daughter Azmina Siddique and son Radwan Mujib Siddique.

Orders have also been issued to confiscate the assets of former ministers and members of parliament including Tajul Islam Nasrul Hamid, Enamur Rahman, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, Mirza Azam, Zakir Hossain, Jannat Ara Henry and many others. Among Sheikh Hasina’s advisors, the property of Salman F Rahman has been confiscated.

On 16 April, at the meeting of the inter-agency task force formed to bring back wealth siphoned overseas, it was said that the court has seized around shares of around Tk 170  billion (Tk 17,000 crore) of Sheikh Hasina and her family, as well as of 10 industrial groups. Also, around Tk 40 billion (Tk 4000 crore) of theirs in various bans has been seized and a ban has also been imposed on the foreign travel of 84 persons.

Two directors general of ACC, in condition of anonymity, that an appeal had been made to the court for the seizure and confiscation of assets suspected to be illegal, once investigations were started against any persons. Chargesheets are issued upon completion of investigations into the case. They said, after the trial if anyone is proven to be guilty, the court will order that the illegal assets be confiscated in favour of the state. However, a lengthy process is followed in the seizure and confiscation of assets abroad.

Among the government officials whose assets have been seized is Md. Shamsul Alam Milky, former assistant director of Rajdhani Unnayan Katripakhya (RAJUK). According to sources at ACC, he constructed an eight-storey building in Sector 9 of Uttara, Dhaka, through bribery, corruption, and other irregularities.

The caretaker of eight-storey building, Md. Sohel Mia, said that the building has 10 flats. The owner lived on the second floor. Excluding that floor, the monthly rental income is about Tk 250,000. After collecting the rent, he contacted the ACC officials, who then come and took the money.

The persons against whom ACC is now taking action were a part of the last government or were beneficiaries of that government. In the past it was seen that ACC would hardly ever take action against those in power.

Executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh, Iftekharuzzaman that ACC must also take action against those in power or those connected with the authorities if any allegations of corruption arise against them. Concerning the seized assets, he said that though the process is complicated, if the court passes its ruling accordingly, then the assets are confiscated in favour of the state. The ACC reform commission, in its report, has recommended that 10 per cent of the seized wealth is given to ACC. This will be an incentive and also will build up a fund for the commission.