Case filed against Hasina, Rehana
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her sister Sheikh Rehana over allegations of collecting and embezzling Tk276 crore 34 lakh 50 thousand through the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust.
Former Bangladesh Association of Banks (BAB) president and former EXIM Bank chairman Mohammad Nazrul Islam Mazumder has also been named as a defendant in the case.
ACC Assistant Director Mohammad Ismail Hossain filed the case at the commission’s Dhaka Integrated District Office-1 on Thursday, September 3. ACC Secretary Mohammad Saidur Rahman Khan later confirmed the matter to journalists.
According to the case statement, the accused allegedly acted in collusion, abused their positions and committed criminal breach of trust by collecting Tk276 crore 34 lakh 50 thousand from the corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds of 41 scheduled banks in favour of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust.
The ACC alleged that the collection caused financial loss to the state.
The case statement said Sheikh Hasina served as president of the trust and Sheikh Rehana as vice-president under the Trusts Act, 1882, while Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was named as its founder.
Funds collected from 41 banks
The ACC said it examined information and records obtained from 41 scheduled banks during its investigation.
According to the commission, then-BAB president Mohammad Nazrul Islam Mazumder used his influence to raise the issue of collecting funds for the trust during discussions under the “miscellaneous” agenda item at a BAB executive committee meeting, although the matter was not on the meeting’s original agenda.
The executive committee subsequently approved the proposal, the ACC said.
Following the decision, letters were sent to various banks requesting specified amounts in favour of the trust. The banks subsequently provided a total of Tk276 crore 34 lakh 50 thousand from their CSR funds, according to the case statement.
The ACC alleged that Bangladesh Bank’s Policy Guidelines on Corporate Social Responsibility for Banks and Financial Institutions provide guidelines on the use of CSR funds but contain no provision allowing donations to the trust.
ACC says trust lacked approved status
The case statement further said that an ACC physical inspection found no evidence of official activities at the stated address of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust.
The commission also said the trust was not an organisation approved by either the Department of Social Services or the NGO Affairs Bureau.
The allegations are subject to investigation and judicial proceedings.
