Staff Correspondent:

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has sent a formal letter to the Election Commission requesting legal action against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina for allegedly providing false information in her asset declaration during the 9th National Parliamentary Election in 2008.

“Discrepancies were found between Sheikh Hasina’s affidavit submitted to the EC and the asset records verified by the ACC,” the commission’s Chairman Mohammad Moinuddin Abdullah said at a press briefing at the ACC’s headquarters in the capital’s Segunbagicha on Thursday (May 22).

“Hasina declared 6.50 acres of agricultural land in her 2008 election affidavit, with a stated purchase value of Tk1,75,000. However, investigation revealed that she and her son Joy actually owned 28.411 acres of land, with a purchase value of Tk33,66,010.”

The ACC chairman said this indicates that 21.91 acres of land and approximately Tk31 lakh in asset value were omitted or underreported in the affidavit.

He also accused the ousted PM of importing a Mercedes-Benz car worth €230,000 (approximately Tk1.93 crore at the time) using the duty-free quota allotted to then-MP Muhammad Serajul Akbar from Magura-1 constituency.

Moinuddin said, “The car was registered under Hasina’s residential address at ‘Sudha Sadan’ in Dhanmondi and used by her personally, despite the vehicle not being declared in either her or Akbar’s income tax files or election affidavit. Akbar neither used the car nor mentioned it in any official record.

“In light of these findings, we have formally requested the EC to take necessary legal measures under the Representation of the People Order (RPO), 1972, against Hasina for providing false information in her affidavit,” he added.