Bangladesh News

A special anti-graft court yesterday sentenced former state minister for power Iqbal Hassan Mahmood Tuku to seven years’ rigorous and two years’ simple imprisonment for amassing wealth illegally and concealing information in his wealth statement.

In default, Tuku will have to suffer another one year in jail.

The BNP leader Tuku will have to serve nine years in jail, as the conviction would be implemented consecutively, not concurrently, the court ordered.

The Fifth Special Court of Judge Ashraf Hossain also fined him Tk 50 lakh and directed the government to confiscate his wealth worth over Tk 2.23 crore which is disproportionate to his known sources of income.

Expressing dissatisfaction over the judgment, Tuku’s lawyer Azizur Rahman Chowdhury said he would file an appeal in the High Court (HC) against the verdict.

Tuku has been sentenced to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment under the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Act according to which a person would be convicted if he or she is found to have acquired wealth through dishonest means.

He was sentenced to two years’ simple imprisonment for concealing information in his wealth statement submitted to the ACC where he mentioned that he has immovable and movable properties worth over Tk 35.95 crore.

ACC Deputy Director Golam Shahrier Chowdhury on March 21 filed the case against Tuku, his wife Rumana Mahmud, son Abed Hasan Mahmud and daughter Farah Hasan Mahmud as their wealth valued at Tk 35.95 crore did not match with their sources of income.

An ACC investigation later found their wealth valued worth over Tk 38.42 crore.

The court however could not deliver verdict against Tuku’s wife, son and daughter as the HC stayed proceedings of the case after they filed three separate writ petitions challenging the case.

ACC Assistant Director ASM Akhter Hamid Bhuiyan, also investigation officer of the case, submitted the charge sheet to the Court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Dhaka on June 28 showing 61 people as prosecution witnesses.

Tuku’s wife and daughter obtained bail in the case after they surrendered before the court and sent to jail. The former state minister’s son is still in jail in another case.

Tuku, who was in the ACC’s first list of high profile corruption suspects, was arrested during the first crackdown against big fishes on February 4.