ACC sues Putul over Tk 448cr embezzlement
Staff reporter :
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has approved the filing of a case against Saima Wazed Putul, daughter of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, and 35 others on charges of embezzling Tk 448 crore through Suchona Foundation.
ACC Director General Md Akhter Hossain confirmed the approval while briefing journalists on Monday.
According to the ACC complaint, Saima Wazed and her associates allegedly set up Suchona Foundation as a paper-based organisation, securing registration from the NGO Affairs Bureau and the Department of Social Services.
The foundation then collected large sums of money under the guise of donations, promising illegal benefits to individuals and businesses in return. Instead of being spent on disability welfare projects as claimed, the funds were allegedly siphoned off for personal gain.
The list of accused from the foundation includes trustee Saima Wazed, Prof Mazharul Mannan, former Bangladesh Cricket Board President Nazmul Hassan Papon, Saifullah Abdullah Solenkhi, Jan Bari Rizvi, Vice-Chairman Prof Pran Gopal Datta, executive member Mehraj Jahan, Prof Ruhul Haque, Shirin Zaman Munir, and Helaluddin Ahmed.
The complaint further alleges that a number of prominent businessmen contributed “donations” to secure undue advantages. They include Hamid Real Estate Chairman Enthekhabul Hamid, former minister Nurul Islam, former MP and Beximco Vice-Chairman Salman F Rahman, Summit Group Chairman Mohammad Aziz Khan, former MP AKM Rahmatullah, United Group Chairman Moinuddin Hasan Rashid, Meghna Group Chairman Mostafa Kamal, and Bill Trade Engineering Ltd Chairman Enayetur Rahman.
In addition, the ACC accused several National Board of Revenue (NBR) officials, including former chairman Md Nojibur Rahman, of abusing their powers to grant tax exemptions to Suchona Foundation. This allegedly resulted in nearly Tk 100 crore in tax evasion, with at least 15 NBR officials implicated in the scheme.
The foundation is also accused of evading Tk 990 crore in taxes between FY2015-16 and FY2024-25 through forgery and fraudulent activities. Moreover, suspicious transactions worth Tk 930 crore were reportedly conducted through 14 bank accounts under the foundation’s name.
The allegations cite collusion, misconduct, breach of trust, and abuse of power, amounting to embezzlement of Tk 447.95 crore.
This is not the first corruption case linked to Suchona Foundation. On 20 March, the ACC had already filed a case against Saima Wazed and others over the alleged embezzlement of Tk 33 crore.