SC defers hearing to stay HC against S Alam Group
Staff Reporter :
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Monday deferred till January 15 in 2024 its hearing on a petition filed seeking stay on a High Court order that asked the authorities concerned to probe into the allegations against the owner of S Alam Group of amassing huge amounts of properties abroad without Bangladesh Bank’s permission.
A four member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Justice Borhanuddin set the new date. The apex court opined that it will hold hearing on the issue with the presence of the Chief Justice, said lawyer Saifullah Mamun, one of the counsels of S Alam Group.
Supreme Court sources said Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan went to his native village, Netrokona, to cast his vote in the 12th national election. He already come back to Dhaka, but he could not sit in the court on Monday for judicial work.
Earlier on August 23 in 2023, the Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division ordered to maintain status quo till January 8 in 2024 upon the subject matter of the High Court order that asked the authorities concerned to conduct inquiry into the allegations against S Alam Group owner.
Justice M Enayetur Rahim, the then Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division, passed the order after hearing a petition filed by the S Alam Group seeking a stay on the HC order. The Chamber Judge also sent the matter to the regular Appellate Division bench for detail hearing on it on that day.
Earlier on August 21, Mohammad Saiful Alam, owner of the S Alam Group, and his wife Farzana Parveen submitted the petition to the Appellate Division seeking stay on the High Court order.
On August 6, the High Court directed the authorities concerned to conduct inquiry into the allegations against S Alam Group regarding the transfer and investment of huge amount of money abroad without permission from the Bangladesh Bank.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), the Bangladesh Financial Intelligent Unit (BFIU) and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Police were asked to comply with the direction. The organizations were also asked to submit inquiry report to the HC within two months.
The High Court bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Khizir Hayat passed the order on a Suo motu (on its own motion) move after considering a report published in an English daily on August 4 in 2023 under the headline “S Alam’s Aladdin’s Lamp”.
Supreme Court lawyer Syed Sayedul Haque Suman placed the newspaper report before the HC bench seeking necessary directives.
The published report has accused S Alam and his wife Farzana Parveen of investing and transferring money through offshore banking to Singapore, British Virgin Islands and Cyprus. Bangladesh Bank and BFIU had been asked to report whether these two had offshore banking approvals, and if not, how they transferred the investment or money.
In addition, the court has asked the CID to inquire whether there has been money laundering in the case of investment or money transfer abroad.
According to the published report, S Alam Group owner Saiful Alam has built a business empire in Singapore worth at least about $1 billion, although there is no record of him taking any permission from Bangladesh Bank to invest or transfer any funds abroad.
The Bangladesh central bank has so far allowed 17 companies to invest outside the country, and this Chattogram-based business giant is not on that list.
