Staff Correspondent, Cox’s Bazar

Former deputy commissioner at Cox’s Bazar Md Ruhul Amin, the prime accused in a case filed over embezzling Tk 200 million in acquiring land for a power plant in Matarbari of Maheshkhali, dropped his name forging the plaintiff’s signature and other related documents.

Four people including former district and sessions judge at Cox’s Bazar Sadikul Islam Talukder assisted him in the offence.

This was said in an investigation report submitted by Md Riaz Uddin, assistant director at the integrated district office of Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) in Cox’s Bazar and investigation officer of the case.

The report was produced before the court of a senior special judge in Cox’s Bazar on Monday and pleaded for an arrest warrant against the accused in the case, freezing their assets.

IO Md Riaz Uddin and special judge court’s nazir Md Bedarul Alam confirmed this to Prothom Alo.

Court sources said AKM Kaisarul Islam Chowdhury from Matarbari filed the cases against 28 people, including deputy commissioner Md Ruhul Amin, on 19 November 2014.

Taking the case into cognisance, the court ordered the ACC to conduct an investigation.

But immediately after filing the case, Sadikul Islam Talukder, who was the district and sessions judge at Cox’s Bazar at that time, sent the case documents to the ACC headquarters dropping the name of prime accused Md Ruhul Amin.

Speaking about this, Cox’s Bazar court public prosecutor Abdur Rahim said upon acknowledgement of the matter, plaintiff Kaisarul Islam Chowdhury filed another lawsuit with the same court against seven people, including deputy commissioner Ruhul Amin and district judge Sadikul Islam Talukder on charges of forgery. In this regard, ACC on Monday produced the report before the court upon investigating the forgery case.

ACC and court sources said 1,414 acres of land was acquired for construction of a coal-fired power plant in Matarbari of Maheshkhali with a 1320 MW generation capacity.

The government allocated Tk 2.37 billion for compensations for shrimp enclosures, houses and other infrastructures. Of the amount, Tk 460 million was for shrimp enclosures.

Of this, over Tk 198.28 million was withdrawn to pay as compensation to 25 nonexistent shrimp enclosures and embezzled.

Another case was filed against former DC Ruhul Amin and other accused at Cox’s Bazar Sadar Model police station on 7 December 2014.

ACC found proof of embezzlement of Tk 200 million after a long investigation.

Court sources said deputy commissioner Ruhul Amin was sent to jail on 22 May 2017 in the corruption case. Before he was suspended from the job.

Currently, the trial in the lawsuit is taking place at Chattogram divisional special judge court.