By Pinaki Roy in Dhaka

Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) this week pressed charges against Tarique Rahman, the elder son of former prime minister and present leader of the opposition BNP Khaleda Zia, and his business partner Giasuddin Al-Mamun in connection with alleged money laundering.

The charge sheet accuses Tarique and Mamun of laundering Tk20,41,25,843 between 2003 and 2007.

The case will further delay Tarique’s return from London. He has been seen as the next leader of BNP when Khaleda Zia retires as the party chief. Under bail from the Supreme Court, Tarique and his family have now been in London on medical grounds for more than a year.

Allegations of massive corruption by Tarique and other cabinet members saw Bangladeshis reject the BNP and it’s ally Jamaat-e-Islami at the last general election in 2008, when the Awami League scored a landslide victory.

The ACC’s investigating officer said Tarique Rahman, currently senior vice president of the BNP, secured the money in foreign currency from different companies and organisations by making promises to give them work from 2001 to 2007 while his mother was prime minister.

The charge sheet mentions that Tarique used Mamun’s Singapore Citibank account to conceal his identity, and used a supplementary credit card issued against Mamun’s account to draw the money.

In the investigation, the ACC found Euro currency worth Tk1.19 crore, US currency worth Tk19.02 crore and British pound sterling worth Tk19.51 lakh in the Mamun’s Citibank account.

The charge sheet says that Tarique and Mamun have committed a criminal offence by receiving money in foreign currency in a foreign bank account and concealing information about the money.

According to the charge sheet, Hosaf group chairman Moazzem Hossain deposited US$11.67 lakh (Tk8.2 crore) on 16th January 2003 in the Mamun’s Citibank account as a power plant consultancy fee.

On 1st August the same year, Nirman Construction chairman Khadiza Islam allegedly sent US$7.50 lakh (Tk5.25 crore) to the account from OCC bank in Singapore for securing the contract to build an 80 megawatt power plant in Tongi.

An individual named Mayer Cie-Re deposited US$4.20 lakh (Tk2.9 crore) on 5th June the same year, while a Merina Zaman deposited US$30,000 (Tk21 lakh) on 26th September.

The charge sheet also shows deposits of US$4.11 lakh (Tk2.88 crore) from unnamed sources. It further says that Tarique drew US$54,982 from the account while Mamun drew US$79,542 on different occasions from 2003 until 2007.

The investigator found that Tarique drew money from Mamun’s account using a supplementary debit card.

Later, during interrogation Mamun confessed to having illegally obtained money in Citibank and Natwest.

His business partner Mamun, who is accused in dozens of cases, is now in custody and has been convicted in three trials, including an arms case and two graft cases.

Mohammad Ibrahim filed the case against Tarique Rahman and Giasuddin Al Mamun, who were arrested in 2007 during a massive drive against corruption, with Dhaka Cantonment Police Station on 26th October last year.

In reaction to the submission of the charge sheet, BNP standing committee member Nazrul Islam Khan said the allegations are totally false and have been brought to keep Tarique out of politics.

Published on 9th July 2010