[🇧🇩] Everything about Hasina's misrule/Laundered Money etc.

[Saif]

$300m laundering: Hasina, Sajeeb under ACC scanner

The Anti-Corruption Commission on Sunday decided to conduct an inquiry into the allegation against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy of laundering $300 million to the...

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$300m laundering: Hasina, Sajeeb under ACC scanner
Solamain Salman 22 December, 2024, 23:57

Sheikh Hasina and Sajeeb Wazed Joy

The Anti-Corruption Commission on Sunday decided to conduct an inquiry into the allegation against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy of laundering $300 million to the United States and the United Kingdom.

The commission made the decision at its meeting at the commission headquarters in Dhaka with its newly-appointed chairman Mohammad Abdul Momen in the chair, ACC director general Md Aktar Hossain told New Age.

According to the allegation, the name of Sajeeb Wazed Joy first came up as a money laundering suspect in the United States versus Rizvi Ahmed case in 2014.

Later, a probe conducted by a powerful US intelligence agency uncovered serious financial scams involving Sajeeb Wazed, it said.

It also noted that in particular, information emerged that money was being laundered from various bank accounts in Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands in his name to various bank accounts in Washington and New York in the United States and London in the United Kingdom through a local money exchange entity.

The US intelligence agency also confirmed the matter through their London representative and found evidence of serious financial irregularities and money laundering committed by Sajeeb Wazed, said the allegation.

It also mentioned that Linda Samuels, Senior Trial Attorney of the Department of Justice, contacted Special Agent La Prevot and found that $300 million was deposited from Bangladesh to various bank accounts in the United States.

The commission came up with the new inquiry against deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her son Sajeeb Wazed just four days after the commission on December 17 started an inquiry into Tk 80,000 crore corruption allegations against Hasina, Sajeeb Wazed, her younger sister Sheikh Rehana and Rehana’s daughter and British minister Tulip Siddiq.

The alleged corruption involving Tk 80,000 crore occurred in nine projects, including the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant and the Special Ashrayan Project during the Awami League government between 2009 and 2023, according to the allegation.

Amid a student-led mass uprising on August 5, prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India while her son Sajeeb Wazed, also her information and communication technology adviser, is staying abroad.

According to the White Paper on the State of the Bangladesh Economy published recently, Bangladesh lost $16 billion annually on average between 2009 and 2023 because of the illicit fund flow under the authoritarian AL regime.

The illicit financial outflows are more than double the combined value of net foreign aid and foreign direct investment, the white paper said.

After the fall of the autocratic rule of Sheikh Hasina, the Professor Muhammad Yunus-led interim government came to power on August 8 and announced that it would take steps to bring back the laundered money.

As a part of the initiative, the commission has been actively collaborating with international agencies, including the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, the World Bank, and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, to tackle money laundering.

On September 9, a delegation from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation held a meeting at the commission headquarters with the director general of the ACC’s money laundering and legal unit and other officials concerned.

Besides, on October 1, a three-member EU delegation, led by Michal Krejza, head of cooperation at the EU delegation to Bangladesh, met then ACC chairman Mohammad Moinuddin Abdullah and discussed the repatriation of laundered funds and technical assistance to strengthen the commission’s operational capabilities, said ACC officials.​

 

[Saif]

Hasina used higher courts to consolidate power: Asif Nazrul

Law Adviser Prof Asif Nazrul today said Sheikh Hasina's fascist regime used the higher court’s immense power to consolidate its power

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Hasina used higher courts to consolidate power: Asif Nazrul

Asif Nazrul

Law Adviser Prof Asif Nazrul today said Sheikh Hasina's fascist regime used the higher court's immense power to consolidate its power.

"It (higher courts) holds unlimited authority, with significant scope to provide remedies even in cases involving fundamental rights. However, we observed with shock and sorrow that this immense power was used during Sheikh Hasina's fascist regime to consolidate power, perpetrate oppression, and violate the rights of ordinary citizens," he said.

"If someone shows allegiances to 'Joy Bangla' or 'Zindabad' and becomes a judge, there is little hope for the High Court. If the higher courts are the most corrupt, the most loyal to political parties, and the most partisan, then what will you achieve by granting independence to the lower courts? First, we need to fix the higher courts," he added.

He made the remarks as part of the series of dialogue titled "Democratic Reconstitution: On Judiciary", organised by the Centre for Governance Studies at the CIRDAP auditorium.

Referring to Khadijatul Kubra's case under the Digital Security Act (DSA), the adviser said, "We have witnessed astonishing incidents where, despite the High Court granting bail, the Appellate Division has indefinitely delayed her bail application, leaving her imprisoned without cause."

"Bangladesh's judicial system had become an instrument of oppression, persecution, and human rights violations. If free and fair elections are held in the country, the judiciary will never transform into such a ruthless and oppressive institution," he opined.

He further said that if elections were held every five years and genuinely reflected the people's will, the oppressive ruling parties in Bangladesh would not be able to act as they do now. When elections do not exist, arbitrary oppression becomes the norm," he said.

He added that at the root of all reforms, the election system must be prioritised.

He mentioned that the government would enact a law regarding the appointment of High Court judges this month. They also have plans to establish a judiciary secretariat within three months and a permanent prosecution service within six months.

"If we are given at least a year, we will complete these tasks," he asserted.

"I believe the stronger our consensus is, the harder -- almost impossible -- it will be for the next political government to repeal these reforms," he added.​

 

[Saif]

S Alam threatens int’l legal action against govt: FT

S Alam Group owner Mohammed Saiful Alam has initiated a legal effort as a Singaporean citizen to recover financial losses he claims were caused by the Bangladeshi government freezing his assets and harming his investments, The Financial Times reports.

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S Alam threatens int’l legal action against govt: FT

Collected photo

S Alam Group owner Mohammed Saiful Alam has initiated a legal effort as a Singaporean citizen to recover financial losses he claims were caused by the Bangladeshi government freezing his assets and harming his investments, The Financial Times reports.

The dispute stems from actions taken by the interim government following the ousting of prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

Alam says his family's bank accounts were frozen, they were subjected to travel bans, and they lost control of their companies, all while facing investigations for alleged money laundering without formal notification.

S Alam has sent a "notice of dispute" to Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and key advisers, warning that if the matter is unresolved within six months, he will pursue international arbitration under a 2004 bilateral investment treaty between Bangladesh and Singapore.

The December 18 notice states that the family obtained permanent residence in Singapore in 2011 and citizenship between 2021 and 2023. It adds that they all renounced their Bangladeshi nationality in 2020.

The notice was sent by lawyers of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, an American law firm, according to the FT report.

It states that banks owned by S Alam have been restricted from lending and had their management teams changed, while deals they had in place have been cancelled by the government "arbitrarily and without due process".

"The value of the investors' investments has been destroyed, in whole or in part, through the acts and omissions of Bangladesh, its agencies and instrumentalities," the Quinn Emanuel notice states.

"Those acts and omissions, which are ongoing, have violated and continue to violate the investors' rights under [investment treaties] and the laws of Bangladesh, and give rise to the present dispute."

The Bangladesh government did not respond to a request for comments on the letter.

Ahsan H Mansur, who was appointed Bangladesh's central bank governor following the toppling of Hasina's regime in August, told the FT in October that Saiful Alam, his associates, and other groups had siphoned money out of the banking system after taking over leading banks with the help of members of a powerful military intelligence agency.

Mansur, a former IMF official, alleged that they used methods such as loans to the banks' new shareholders and inflated import invoices as part of what he called the "biggest, highest robbing of banks by any international standards".

S Alam Group, which has interests in sectors including food, construction, garments, and banking, has said there is "no truth" to Mansur's allegations.

A spokesperson for Bangladesh's central bank said, "The issues are under investigation and the central bank has refrained from any comment for the betterment of the investigation outcomes."

Alam's letter is an early indicator of the hurdles Bangladesh's interim government faces in its attempts to reclaim money it says was taken out of the banking system under the regime of Hasina.​

 

[Saif]

A guide to smuggling dreams and national nightmares

Few heists match the sheer audacity of the Awami League’s 15-year saga of economic escapades.

www.thedailystar.net

A guide to smuggling dreams and national nightmares

VISUAL: SALMAN SAKIB SHAHRYAR

In the vast tapestry of human creativity, few heists match the sheer audacity of the Awami League's 15-year saga of economic escapades. It's as though the government took cues from Ocean's Eleven, but instead of Danny Ocean and his suave crew, we had a merry band of bureaucrats, politicians and their cronies, all playing fast and loose with public funds. The white paper report on $234 billion (approximately Tk 28 lakh crore) in smuggled money isn't just a document; it's the script of a dystopian drama where "the tumour" of corruption metastasised across the economy, creating villains more cunning than Moriarty and institutions more fragile than Humpty Dumpty.

Jerry Maguire's famous line seems to have been taken as gospel by corrupt leaders and business moguls, who perfected the art of money laundering during the Awami League's tenure. According to the white paper, an average of Tk 1.8 lakh crore was smuggled abroad annually—enough to buy private islands, fund covert lunar missions or, more realistically, snap up overpriced condos in Dubai. Bangladeshis now own 532 properties in Dubai, worth a cool $375 million, which makes one wonder: is Bangladesh exporting labour or landlords?

Meanwhile, the Malaysia My Second Home programme welcomed more than 3,600 Bangladeshis, proving that while the poor migrate for better opportunities, the rich migrate for better villas. These transactions read like chapters from The Great Gatsby, where extravagance and deceit coexist in splendid harmony. But unlike Jay Gatsby's mysterious fortune, this loot comes with a paper trail—albeit one guarded by layers of bureaucratic misdirection.

Banks have been called the lifeblood of economies, but during this regime, they morphed into black holes, swallowing Tk 6.75 lakh crore in distressed loans. That's enough to build more than 13 metro rails or 22 Padma Bridges—or, in the true satirical spirit, one really long bridge to nowhere. Like Littlefinger from the Game of Thrones, the regime's players used banks not to build but to destabilise, enriching themselves while the kingdom crumbled.

These "distressed loans" weren't just numbers; they were lifelines for a select few oligarchs. Loans were disbursed with the generosity of Santa Claus, except the gifts were misappropriated funds, and the recipients were neither naughty nor nice—just connected.

Remember The Truman Show, where everything was a perfectly crafted illusion? That's precisely how the previous regime approached development projects. Roads, bridges, and hospitals became vanity projects, bloated with unnecessary costs and laced with bribes. It's almost poetic how money flowed like champagne at Gatsby's parties—except it wasn't enjoyed by the citizens who footed the bill.

Even the Annual Development Programme (ADP) was a masterpiece of creative accounting. Tk 7.2 lakh crore was spent over 15 years, with Tk 1.61 lakh crore to 2.8 lakh crore of it just wasted and looted. This wasn't development, it was performance art, a Kafkaesque nightmare where bridges connected not cities but offshore accounts.

If the banking sector was a black hole, the stock market was its rowdy cousin. Tk 1 lakh crore was embezzled through IPO fraud and placement scams, orchestrated by a shadowy cabal of politicians, bureaucrats, and "entrepreneurial" visionaries. These schemes rivalled Jordan Belfort's exploits in The Wolf of Wall Street.

This isn't just fraud—it's artistry. It takes a genius to convince an entire nation that the stock market is a viable investment while you quietly pocket the proceeds.

In 1984, George Orwell described a world where truth was malleable, and facts were twisted to serve the ruling party. The Awami League apparently took this as a blueprint, manipulating GDP and inflation statistics to paint a rosy picture. The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) became the Ministry of Truth, churning out data that would make even Big Brother blush.

Meanwhile, corruption flourished unchecked. Bribes were no longer local transactions but global ventures. Funds once used to fuel the shadow economy at home were now smuggled abroad, funding lifestyles more lavish than Crazy Rich Asians. The report calls this phenomenon a "malignant tumour," but perhaps it's more akin to Voldemort—an ever-present, parasitic force sucking the life out of the nation.

If Charles Dickens were alive today, he might rewrite A Tale of Two Cities as A Tale of Two Classes: one that tightened its belt and another that loosened its purse strings abroad. The white paper reveals how capitalism birthed oligarchs who manipulated policy, entrenched corruption, and hoarded wealth overseas.

Imagine Walter White in Breaking Bad, but instead of cooking meth, he's cooking up development budgets. The white paper reveals how inflated project costs were systematically looted, with money laundered through shell companies and overseas investments. Every construction project became a criminal enterprise, and every politician a Gustavo Fring, a respectable façade hiding a sinister core.

As we sift through this economic rubble, the interim government faces a Herculean task: restoring integrity to institutions gutted by corruption. But let's not kid ourselves. There will be no sweeping reforms overnight. Instead, we're in for a gritty reboot, where every move is calculated, and every step forward is hard-earned.

The white paper ends with a plea for political will, but one must wonder: is will alone enough to undo 15-plus years of systemic plunder? Perhaps the answer lies not in politics but in public vigilance. For now, though, the Tk 28 lakh crore smuggled remains a testament to a regime that prioritised greed over governance, corruption over competence, and illusion over integrity.

Like all great tragedies, this saga offers a glimmer of hope. The exposure of these crimes marks a turning point—a chance for redemption. But the road ahead is long, winding, and riddled with potholes, many of which were paid for with our stolen money.

So here's to the future—a cleaner, fairer, and more transparent Bangladesh. And to the past? Well, that's best left as a cautionary tale. Let's just hope the next generation writes a different story, one where the villains are vanquished, and the heroes don't need offshore accounts.

H.M. Nazmul Alam is lecturer at the Department of English and Modern Languages of the International University of Business, Agriculture and Technology (IUBAT).​

 

[Saif]

Tulip Siddiq interrogated in United Kingdom over corruption claims in Bangladesh

Tulip Siddiq, a United Kingdom labour minister and niece of Bangladesh’s ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, has been questioned over claims she and her family members embezzled £4b (around Tk 60,000 crore) from a power plant project in Bangladesh..

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Tulip Siddiq interrogated in United Kingdom over corruption claims in Bangladesh
United News of Bangladesh . Dhaka 23 December, 2024, 14:55

Tulip Siddiq. | UNB Photo

Tulip Siddiq, a United Kingdom labour minister and niece of Bangladesh’s ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, has been questioned over claims she and her family members embezzled £4b (around Tk 60,000 crore) from a power plant project in Bangladesh

The cabinet office propriety and ethics team questioned Tulip Siddiq on Sunday over the allegation, reports The Telegraph.

Tulip Siddiq is facing investigation over claims that she and four family members embezzled £4 billion through Roopur Nuke Power Plant Deal in Bangladesh.

British prime minister Keir Starmer has stood by Tulip, who denies the claims and said no authority has contacted her so far about the allegations.

Labour party officials described the claims as ‘spurious’ and made for political reasons by opponents of Hasina.

In October, National Crime Agency investigators visited Bangladesh to ‘support’ its anti-corruption probes.

A Tory MP has written to the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner asking them to launch a probe into Tulip over the allegations.

The Anti-Corruption Commission in Bangladesh decided to start probe the embezzlement allegation against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her sister Sheikh Rehana, son Sajeeb Wazed Joy and niece Tulip Siddiq recently following a High Court order.

Tulip Siddiq, 42, the Treasury’s economic secretary, is responsible for tackling corruption in UK financial markets.

The Mail on Sunday reported that five investigators are gathering ‘documentary evidence’ related to Tulip and others, and are expected to contact them within weeks for their responses.

The report stated that the ACC would send any correspondence to her through the British High Commission in Dhaka.

Citing anonymous officials, the paper noted that once responses are received, investigators will decide whether to file First Information Reports.​

 

[Saif]

Graft allegation: ACC to launch probe against Hasina's military adviser, 7 others

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has decided to launch an investigation against eight individuals, including former Prime Minister's military advisor Tariq Ahmed Siddiqi and senior secretary Mohibul Haque, over allegations of embezzlement in the name of airport development projects

www.thedailystar.net

Graft allegation: ACC to launch probe against Hasina's military adviser, 7 others

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has decided to launch an investigation against eight individuals, including former Prime Minister's military advisor Tariq Ahmed Siddiqi and senior secretary Mohibul Haque, over allegations of embezzlement in the name of airport development projects.

A senior ACC official confirmed it to The Daily Star today.​

 

[Saif]

ACC files cases against ex-state minister Mohibbur, his wife

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed separate cases against former State Minister of Disaster Management and Relief and ex-lawmaker for Patuakhali-4, Mohibbur Rahman, and his wife, Fatema Akhter, on charges of corruption

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ACC files cases against ex-state minister Mohibbur, his wife

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed separate cases against former State Minister of Disaster Management and Relief and ex-lawmaker for Patuakhali-4, Mohibbur Rahman, and his wife, Fatema Akhter, on charges of corruption.

The ACC accuses Mohibbur, 67, of embezzling Tk 31 crore and Fatema, 58, of acquiring Tk 19 crore illegally.

ACC Assistant Director Minhaj Bin Islam filed the cases at the ACC head office on December 23, said Patuakhali ACC Assistant Director Russel Rony.

The allegations state that Mohibbur acquired undeclared assets worth Tk 7.64 crore and made illegal transactions of Tk 23.72 crore through 23 bank accounts from September 2000 to October 2024. Fatema is accused of earning Tk 3.92 crore from undeclared sources and conducting suspicious transactions of Tk 15.51 crore through 11 accounts.

Mohibbur was elected as a lawmaker for Patuakhali-4 in 2018 and 2024 as a Bangladesh Awami League candidate. He served as state minister for Disaster Management and Relief from January 2024 to August 2024. During his tenure, he acquired immovable assets worth Tk 6.21 crore, along with Tk 3.39 crore in savings and DPS accounts, totalling Tk 9.60 crore.

After deducting permissible income sources and expenses, the ACC found Tk 7.64 crore unaccounted for. He also laundered Tk 23.72 crore via suspicious bank transactions.

Fatema, a senior lecturer at Alhaj Jalal Uddin Degree College in Kalapara, allegedly amassed her illegal assets with help from Mohibbur. Her case involves Tk 3.92 crore of undeclared income and suspicious transactions of Tk 15.51 crore.

Following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government on August 5, cases were also filed against Mohibbur in Kalapara and Mohipur police stations for an attack on the Kalapara BNP office and a Tk 50 lakh extortion demand. Both Mohibbur and Fatema have been in hiding since August.

Kalapara Upazila Awami League Senior Vice President SM Rakibul Ahsan accused Mohibbur of widespread corruption, intimidating opponents, buying land at nominal prices, and causing internal divisions within the party. He stated that Mohibbur's actions severely harmed the Awami League's reputation.​

 

[Saif]

Bangladesh’s feasibility study fallacy

Why so many ‘feasible’ projects become utterly infeasible and environmentally disastrous

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Bangladesh’s feasibility study fallacy
Why so many ‘feasible’ projects become utterly infeasible and environmentally disastrous

The Karnaphuli Tunnel has become a white elephant eating up taxpayers’ money. FILE PHOTO: RAJIB RAIHAN

A recent white paper on Bangladesh's economy has reported that seven mega-projects drained Tk 80,569 crore (approximately $7 billion at today's rates) more from the state coffer than the initial estimates due to cost escalations and time overruns.

Unfortunately, not only mega projects show such appalling scenarios. Most government initiatives with public money (note "public money") would miserably fail post-project performance evaluation. It is not only time and cost overruns; the justification for undertaking them in the first place is often flimsy at best and dubious or non-existent in some cases.

We have recently seen several media reports about the unviability of the Karnaphuli tunnel project. Was a feasibility study not undertaken before the country's highest policymaking body approved the project? Did the study not include elaborate cost and benefit streams, return on investment, and an environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA)? The outcome is a 27 percent cost overrun and a white elephant eating up taxpayers' money. The revenue is far below, and the cost is much higher than those stated in the feasibility study.

The Dohazari-Cox's Bazar Railway Project's price tag shot through the roof, as its cost at completion was almost nine times the initial estimate! Then, it exposed the sorry state of the standards by which Bangladesh conducts ESIAs. The alignment ran through floodplains without adequate cross-drainage arrangements, resulting in massive damage to the tracks immediately after completion as monsoon waters rushed down the hills, hitting it with full force. Interestingly, the parallel-running roads have been operating satisfactorily for several years. Certainly, an economic feasibility study, including a rigorous ESIA, was conducted before an international financial institution (IFI) approved the loan for the railway project.

Hailed as an all-weather link that connects Itna, Mithamoin, and Astagram upazilas in Kishoreganj, a 30 km road running through a huge natural water body ("haor") has instead been wreaking havoc, causing untimely flooding and damaging crops on thousands of hectares of land. The road has impeded natural water flow into the rivers through the haor, causing waterlogging and flooding, which was never seen before in the area. Gobbling up Tk 874 crore (about $100 million at 2022 rates) from public funds, the road has adversely impacted local livelihoods, which depend on fishing when the land is inundated and farming at other times, making both difficult. Littering has become another problem as visitors mindlessly dump waste in the water. The project, reportedly undertaken at a president's behest, also had a feasibility study and ESIA conducted prior. However, it simply glossed over such adverse social and environmental impacts and cooked up its economic viability to get through the government's checkbox-ticking approval process.

The list is endless. Project preparatory studies are never conducted with the professional rigour, ethical standards, or integrity they deserve, whether funded by the government, IFIs (such as the World Bank or the Asian Development Bank) or bilateral financing agencies. The post-project evaluation mechanism is a routine instead of a systemic process of problem identification, lesson learning, and improving next-time exercise.

The Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) of the Ministry of Finance requires project completion reports, which has also become a useless exercise and another form of public money wastage. Has the government ever asked the implementing agency, the consultant, or the contractor why their work was unsatisfactory? Was the outcome of any study ever questioned when such studies turned out to be grossly faulty? Has the responsible agency or persons ever been made accountable?

All these lead to another question, which is more to the point. Was any project dropped because the economic feasibility study found it infeasible, or the ESIA reported that it would have adverse impacts if implemented?

Let's delve deeper into the project screening process. In a classic case of potential conflict of interest, the same organisation (government, IFI or a bilateral financing agency) that intends to extend the fund usually pays for the feasibility study (which includes an ESIA). Such a study will be inherently biased and likely find the project feasible, toning down the adverse social and environmental impacts with impractical mitigation measures and monitoring mechanisms. A glaring case is the Rampal Coal-Fired Power Plant, located next to the Sundarbans, a fragile ecosystem, which anyone with common sense will consider an environmental disaster in waiting. A Greenpeace study reported that the plant would cause at least 6,000 premature deaths and low birth weights of 24,000 babies during its 40-year life. Burning five million tonnes of coal annually, the power plant would be among Bangladesh's largest sources of air pollution. The ritualistic feasibility study and its ESIA (commissioned by those with a stake in its go-ahead) played on like actors in a meticulously scripted sequence, producing volumes of reports without mentioning these unpalatable facts.

How can Bangladesh screen out projects that are infeasible, detrimental to the environment, and harmful to society? What mechanism will facilitate utilising public money more efficiently and sustainably? I will mention two broad measures in this piece, though there will be others. First, a performance audit mechanism should be set up, and accountability should be instilled in the relevant government implementing agency, its officials, and all external parties involved. Second, all feasibility studies should be conducted independently, without bias following the highest professional standards and ethics.

Ultimately, reform is a bitter pill that must be swallowed if the intent is sincere.

Dr Sayeed Ahmed is a consulting engineer and the CEO of Bayside Analytix, a technology-focused strategy and management consulting organisation.​