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Download PDF The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) will question Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina in connection with the Tk 3 crore graft case filed against her and six others on September 2.
Investigation Officer (IO) and ACC Deputy Director Morshed Alam in a petition with the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court, Dhaka yesterday sought permission to quiz the former premier who has been detained since July 16 on extortion charges.
During a routine briefing at the ACC headquarters, ACC Secretary Mukhles Ur Rahman said, “The former prime minister will be questioned as per the law.”
The anti-graft body filed the case with Tejgaon Police Station, accusing Hasina and others of helping a foreign company and its local partners win a deal for setting up a 100-MW barge-mounted power plant in Khulna for Tk 3 crore kickback.
Meanwhile, sources at the ACC said investigation into the wealth statement of Hasina has been stalled after her lawyer Fazle Nur Tapash served a legal notice on the commission on October 18.
The ACC secretary however claimed that the probe is going on as per the rules. He said, “A lawyer’s legal notice cannot postpone the proceedings. We are not bound to follow the legal notice; we are abiding by the Supreme Court orders.”
The officer tasked with the investigation sought instructions from the commission yesterday regarding the legal notice, said the ACC sources.
He enquired if there is any court order staying the investigation and whether he should continue the job.
Fazle Nur Tapash in the legal notice asked the commission to explain why the investigation would not be stopped when the writ petition against the ACC notice asking her to turn in wealth accounts has yet to be disposed of. He also sought explanation as to why the move would not be considered “contempt of court”.
Hasina submitted her wealth statement on September 2 after a prolonged debate in the higher courts over legality of the ACC notice.
The Supreme Court on August 27 stayed till November 6 a High Court order that imposed a freeze on operation of the ACC notice. The HC order came on August 7 in response to a writ petition filed by the AL chief.
MEASURES AGAINST FALSE COMPLAINTS
The ACC from now on will take legal steps if anyone files false, made-up, and motivated complaint against anyone with the commission.
Its secretary said, “We won’t allow false allegations to waste our valuable time. We will take action against the hoaxers while protecting the good persons.”
The decision came after a number of allegations against some persons of high repute turned out to be phony.
The commission also decided to serve notice on a complainant before initiating the investigation. It will first question the complainant to gauge the merit of the complaint.
The commission so far has received around 60,000 corruption allegations.
According to section 511 of the penal code, a person could be sentenced up to seven years in prison for filing false cases and making false depositions.
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