A Supreme Court lawyer on Wednesday submitted an application with the Anti-Corruption Commission seeking an investigation into the corruption allegations against former army chief general Aziz Ahmed, while the commission sent a letter to police headquarters seeking the service records of former Inspector General of Police, Benazir Ahmed.
SC lawyer Salahuddin Reagan submitted media reports and a copy of the sanctions imposed by the United States on Aziz, along with the application, to the ACC chairman.
Asked about the application, ACC chairman Mohammad Moinuddin Abdullah told journalists at the commission’s headquarters that the complaint submitted against the former army chief would be taken into cognizance for a probe if the allegation was under the jurisdiction of the commission.
‘We have no alternative but to probe any graft allegation if the complaint is under the commission’s jurisdiction,’ he said, adding that they will take a decision after reviewing the allegation against the former army chief.
According to the lawyer’s application, the United States sanctions against Aziz on corruption charges and the reports published in national daily newspapers have damaged the image of the Bangladesh Army and Bangladesh in the national and international arenas.
This has damaged the reputation of the Bangladesh Army worldwide, while the reputation of the Bangladesh Army has also been tarnished in the UN peacekeeping mission, and the trust and confidence of the people of the country in the army have been destroyed, it said.
Regan also said that it was very unfortunate that the ACC had not taken any initiative to investigate, even after such a big complaint came up against the former army chief.
On May 21, the United States Department of State announced that the former chief of the Bangladesh Army, General Aziz Ahmed, and his family members were generally ineligible to enter the country due to his involvement in ‘significant corruption’.
After the US sanctions, Aziz, however, dismissed the corruption and nepotism allegations while talking to journalists.
The sanctions against Aziz for the corruption allegation drew huge criticism, prompting people from different quarters to urge the government to probe into the graft allegation against him.
Ruling Awami League general secretary and road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader said at a press conference on Wednesday that a probe would be carried out against the former army chief.
Aziz served as chief of army staff from June 2018 to June 2021. He was also chief of the Border Guard Bangladesh for four years in 2012.
The commission inquiry team formed to inquire about Benazir’s illegal wealth, led by ACC deputy director Hafizul Islam, sent a letter to police headquarters seeking information regarding his service history, an ACC official confirmed to New Age on Wednesday.
ACC, in the letter sent to police headquarters, sought information on his service record when he was posted to various departments of the police administration, including the Rapid Action Battalion and Dhaka Metropolitan Police.
The commission sought all records of the former IGP from his joining the police force as an assistant superintendent of police in February 1988 to his retirement on September 30, 2022.
Benazir was promoted to the post of IGP in April 2020 after serving as commissioner of the DMP and DG of RAB.
Earlier, the ACC on Tuesday decided to interrogate Benazir and his family members over their alleged accumulation of illegal wealth.
The former police chief was likely to be interrogated on June 6 at the ACC headquarters in the capital’s Segun Bagicha, and his wife Zeeshan Mirza, and other family members were likely to be interrogated on June 9.
On May 23, the same Dhaka court also ordered the freezing of 33 financial accounts of Benazir and his family members and the seizure of 345 bighas of property listed in 83 documents under Benazir and his family members’ names in Gopalganj and Cox’s Bazar areas.
The court ordered the seizure of, in total, approximately 621 bighas of land owned by Benazir and his family members.
On April 18, ACC, at its commission’s meeting, decided to carry out an inquiry against Benazir for allegedly accumulating illegal wealth.
Newspapers and electronic media have recently reported on Benazir and his family’s alleged amassing of illegal wealth.
The reports highlighted the lavish lifestyle of the Benazir family and his holding of shares in different companies.
According to the reports, his ‘unusual assets’ did not match the legal sources of income of the former IGP, who received from the government ‘Shuddhachar Purashkar’—an award given for honesty, morality, and proper financial management, among others.
The reports triggered widespread criticism of Benazir Ahmed and his family members.
In a Facebook post, Benazir, however, claimed media reports about him amassing illegal wealth were false, distorted, and motivated.
On December 10, 2021, the United States declared the then IGP Benazir ineligible to enter the country for ‘gross violations of human rights’ while serving as RAB director general.
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