ACC pleas for showing Farmers Bank ex-audit body chief, his son arrested

The Daily Star  July 30, 2020
Star Online Report

The Anti-Corruption Corruption (ACC) today submitted a petition to a Dhaka court for showing Mahbubul Haque Chisty, former audit committee chairman of Farmers Bank Ltd, and his son Rashedul Haque Chisty, arrested in a case filed over the misappropriation of Tk 63 crore.

ACC Deputy Assistant Director Md Shahjahan Meraj, also the investigation officer (IO) of the case, submitted the petition to Judge KM Emrul Kayesh of Dhaka Senior Special Judge’s Court.

The judge fixed August 5 for hearing the petition through videoconferencing with the jail authorities, who are custodians of the accused in the case.

The judge also directed the IO to submit the probe report of the caseby August 16.

On July 21, the ACC filed the case with its Dhaka Integrated District Office-1 against Mahbubul Chisty, Rashedul Chisty and four others for their alleged involvement in the embezzlement of Tk63 crore from Farmers Bank Ltd.

The four other accused in the case are: Jahangir Alam Mazumdar, former vice president of Farmers Banks and the bank’s Motijheel branch in-charge, and Redwanul Kabir Chowdhury, Chowdhury Al Faruk and Nimmi Kabir Chowdhury, managing director, chairman and director of Al Faruk Bags Ltd respectively.

According to the First Information Report (FIR), Al Faruk Bags Ltd, a business in Bogura, took out loans from Farmers Bank with the support of Chisty.

Though Al Faruk Bags did not have any business relations with Bakhshiganj Jute Spinners, they paid Tk1.47 crore to the account of the jute mills owned by Chisty’s family.

Later, Al Faruk Bags borrowed more than Tk40.79 crore, which turned out to Tk63 crore including interest.

With the loan application, Al Faruk Bags Ltd mortgaged land showing an overvalued price. During the loan period in 2015, the land value was shown at around Tk10 crore. However, in 2018, the bank surveyed the land and valued it at around Tk5 crore.

The ACC said in the FIR that the bank disbursed the money without a proper valuation of the mortgaged property.

The FIR also said the loan receiver did not pay a single penny after taking out the loan.