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Download PDF Detained former premier and Awami League (AL) chief Sheikh Hasina was shown arrested yesterday in Niko graft case filed against her on charge of causing a huge loss to the state through awarding gas exploration deals to Canadian company Niko by abusing power while in office.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Golam Rabbani passed the order following a petition by the investigation officer (IO) of the case, ACC Deputy Director MM Sabbir Hasan.
Meanwhile, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC)
said the IOs of both the cases filed in this connection against the two detained former premiers — Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia– are also seeking arrest warrant against 10 others accused in the cases. Investigation into those is going on.
Mentioning that Hasina is now in jail in connection with a Tk 3 crore extortion case filed by businessman Azam J Chowdhury, the IO of the Niko case against Hasina, who also filed it on December 9, said in his petition it is necessary to show her arrested also in this case.
Co-accused with Hasina in this case are detained former state minister for energy Rafiqul Islam, former principal secretary to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Dr SA Samad, former energy secretaries Dr Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury and M Akmal Hossain, former Petrobangla chairman Mosharraf Hossain, and Vice-president (South Aisa) of Niko Research Bangladesh Ltd Kashem Sharif.
The joint forces arrested the AL chief from her Dhanmondi residence in the capital on July 16. And hearing on charge framing against her and two other accused in the extortion case is now being held.
Earlier on Monday, Khaleda, former law minister Moudud Ahmed and former energy minister AKM Mosharraf Hossain –all detained– were also shown arrested in the Niko graft case.
ACC Assistant Director Mahbubul Alam filed the case against Khaleda and four others on December 9 saying that although she was custodian of the country’s resources as prime minister, she awarded Niko an opportunity to extract gas worth Tk10,000 crore, criminally violating her oath, using her power unlawfully, and through corruption.
The BNP chief was detained on September 3 in the first graft case filed by the ACC against her and her younger son Arafat Rahman Koko, on charges of violation of tender conditions in appointing Gatco, an indenting house, for container handling at Dhaka inland container depot and at Chittagong port yard.
Yesterday, the ACC also filed a case against Nur-E-Alam Chowdhury Liton of the AL, and his wife Zinat Parvin Chowdhury Iva for amassing wealth worth Tk 65,83,363 which is beyond their known sources of income.
Briefing the press yesterday, ACC Director General (administration) Col Hanif Iqbal said that to lessen people’s sufferings, the commission will now investigate corruption still going on.
The ACC will focus on investigations against corrupt businessmen and bureaucrats to make the administration corruption -free.
“Investigation is going on against almost everyone of those accused to have involved corruption. And action will be taken against them once evidence is found,” he said.
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