TDS Desk:

Dr Ahmad Kaikaus’s rise within the bureaucracy reads like a fairy tale. Starting from virtually nothing, he suddenly emerged into the limelight. During his government service, he took study leave to Dallas, USA, where he completed a PhD and also acquired American citizenship. When the Awami League returned to power in 2009, he came back to Bangladesh. Despite holding US citizenship, his government job remained intact. In a seemingly miraculous way, he quickly ascended to the highest echelons of the bureaucracy, transforming it into a mafia-like regime.

He created a vicious cycle of corruption and lawlessness within the administration, establishing and leading a mafia circle that maintained power over the years. By early 2024, Ahmad Kaikaus realised that his corrupt activities would make it impossible for him to remain in power. At that time, he secured a government-funded overseas position and later left his job at the World Bank to join an American company, just before the anticipated fall of the Awami League. Now, he enjoys his days surrounded by vast wealth transferred abroad.

Although an average bureaucrat of the 84th batch with limited administrative experience—never having been a district commissioner or holding any senior field post—his rapid rise was facilitated by his close connection with S Alam, one of Bangladesh’s top money launderers. After returning from the US, Ahmad Kaikaus became a close associate of S Alam, who needed a bureaucrat to help execute his grand embezzlement schemes. As a local contact, Kaikaus was chosen to assist in expanding S Alam’s illicit empire, and in return, he amassed thousands of crores in wealth.

S Alam dictated whom to appoint in key positions, and Kaikaus complied obediently. This relationship earned Kaikaus the trust of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s inner circle. His breakthrough came when he was appointed Secretary of the Power Division. Immediately upon assuming this role, he began overseeing the looting and corruption related to the electricity sector, particularly linked to Sheikh Hasina’s family, thus cementing his closeness and trust with them.

As Power Secretary, he approved thirty-one quick rental power projects, through which he earned thousands of crores of taka. He also gained a reputation as a close and trusted bureaucrat of Sheikh Hasina, and from that point onward, his ascent was unstoppable. Under his tenure, these projects saw enormous financial gains that were largely siphoned off.

Following the controversial 2018 night-time election, Sheikh Hasina appointed him Chief Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office, where he took control of the entire bureaucracy and critical government sectors, including electricity and banking. He created a syndicate within the bureaucracy, appointing loyal and corrupt officials to powerful ministries—especially those with large budgets—who worked solely according to his instructions.

For instance, in the Civil Aviation Ministry, the budget for the third terminal was inflated threefold over three revisions, allowing huge kickbacks. To ensure control, he appointed a notoriously corrupt bureaucrat as Secretary of the Civil Aviation Ministry, known to be close to him. Similarly, in the Power Ministry, he placed loyalists who followed his commands and arranged contract-based appointments for his trusted people.

Ahmad Kaikaus was the mastermind behind the rampant plunder in the banking sector. Defying the tradition of appointing distinguished economists or experts as Bangladesh Bank governors, he installed a bureaucrat who acted solely under his and S Alam’s direction. This puppet governor facilitated widespread looting and money laundering, turning the banking sector into a sanctuary for corruption. Through his loyal aide, Abdur Rauf Talukdar, the looting began and flourished.

By strategically installing his preferred bureaucrats in every ministry, Ahmad Kaikaus orchestrated boundless plunder and made the bureaucracy the ultimate power hub. He diminished the influence of ministers and politicians, empowering bureaucrats instead. Under his leadership, the bureaucracy became a den of corruption and exploitation.

Since taking charge in 2018, the autocratic Awami League government gradually transformed into a bureaucrat-dependent regime, with bureaucrats becoming omnipotent rulers—thus giving rise to what is now called the “Awami Bureaucrat Mafia System.” During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Ahmad Kaikaus emerged as the holder of supreme power, in some ways even surpassing the Prime Minister. He orchestrated meetings with business leaders, extorted funds from them, pressured banks to allocate money from the Prime Minister’s relief fund, and engaged in numerous corrupt activities.

By this time, Ahmad Kaikaus had destroyed all impartiality in the administration, turning it into an extension of the Awami League’s political machine. It was here that the organisation known as the Awami League began to lose its identity.

Ahmad Kaikaus refused to listen to any minister or political leader except Sheikh Hasina herself. He openly declared that no one mattered to him but the Prime Minister. His syndicate allowed bureaucrats unchecked freedom to loot, while he himself accumulated thousands of crores of taka. He was the principal architect behind the rise and misdeeds of bureaucrats during the Awami League’s rule.

His corrupt activities spanned multiple domains. He spread corruption throughout the bureaucracy, controlling every ministry’s secretary, who embezzled portions of development project funds and budget allocations, funneling a share back to him. For example, the Local Government Ministry spent nearly Tk32,000 crore from 2018 to 2023 on small infrastructure projects like bridges and culverts, but only Tk4,000 crore worth of actual work was done. The rest was stolen, with some of the proceeds sent abroad.

During the pandemic, the government spent approximately Tk100,000 crore on vaccines and medical supplies, but only around Tk20,000 crore was effectively utilised—the remaining Tk80,000 crore was embezzled, with Kaikaus receiving a significant portion. Under S Alam’s instructions, Kaikaus created chaos in the banking sector, turning it into a hub of looting and money laundering by undermining Bangladesh Bank’s administration.

In the power sector, he institutionalised plunder by initiating commission-based deals with foreign companies under the guise of power contracts. Furthermore, through various social safety net projects, including the Ashrayan housing scheme for the homeless, he facilitated the embezzlement of thousands of crores. He directed bureaucrats to build multiple houses under this scheme to appease him, rewarding them with promotions and contract-based appointments, while he collected hefty commissions. No stolen money remained in the country; it was sent abroad.

Presently, Ahmad Kaikaus resides in Washington, DC, working with Moran Global Strategies, a lobbying firm founded by former Congressman James G. Moran. Despite multiple allegations of corruption, no effective legal action has been taken against him. His vast accumulation of illicit wealth overseas poses a serious question of why he remains beyond the reach of justice.