Staff Correspondent

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) will now take necessary action against the family members of Benazir Ahmed as they have also not appeared before the commission like the former inspector general of police (IGP).

“Benazir’s wife and two daughters were supposed to be interrogated today (Monday). But they neither appeared before the ACC nor applied for a time extension. The ACC will now take necessary action against them,” ACC Secretary Khorsheda Yasmeen said while briefing reporters at her office.

She said Benazir’s family members, however, submitted written statements along with Benazir’s application on Thursday last where they described their stances.

Yasmeen further said the ACC inquiry team is working as per the ACC Act 2004 and ACC Rules 2007, and it will submit the inquiry report in time. “Then the commission will decide the next course of action. The same legal proceedings as applicable for others will be followed here.”

Turning to corruption allegations against former National Board of Revenue (NBR) officer Matiur Rahman, she said the three-member committee formed to look into the allegations has already started work.

She said the court has barred Matiur, his first wife Laila Kaniz and son Ahmed Toufiqur Rahman from leaving the country following an appeal filed by the ACC.

The ACC secretary dismissed any pressure from any quarter, saying the commission is working independently. “There’s no pressure here. The investigation into corruption allegations against NBR officer Matiur Rahman is ongoing.”

Benazir’s wife Zeeshan Mirza and two daughters – Farheen Rishta Binte Benazir and Tahseen Raisa Binte Benazir – were earlier summoned for questioning on 9 June.

However, they could not appear before the ACC on the scheduled date and instead appealed for a time extension.

Granting their applications, the ACC set 24 June as the new date for interrogation.

The Kaler Kantho and the Daily Sun, in early April, published a series of reports detailing the wealth and properties allegedly acquired through illegal means by Benazir Ahmed and his family members which sparked a widespread discussion throughout the country.

Supreme Court lawyer Syed Sayedul Haque Suman approached the ACC seeking an investigation into allegations against the ex-IGP of amassing huge illegal wealth by abusing power.

Later, the High Court asked the ACC to submit a progress report on the investigation into the alleged illegal wealth of the former IGP and his family within two months.

On 22 April, the ACC told the media that it formed a three-member committee, led by Deputy Director Md Hafizul Islam, to investigate the allegations against the former IGP of amassing huge illegal wealth through abusing power.

On 23 May, Judge Mohammad As-Shams Jaglul Hossain of Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge’s Court ordered the confiscation of 345 bighas (114 acres) of land under 83 deeds and the freezing of 33 bank accounts belonging to Benazir and his family members.

At the request of the ACC, the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) then sent letters to various banks seeking information and informed the commission later on. Based on the information of the ACC, the court ordered the confiscation of 345 bighas of land and the freezing of 33 bank accounts.

On 26 May, the same court also ordered the confiscation of land under 119 more deeds, shares in 23 companies and four flats in Gulshan, belonging to Benazir and his family members.

The ACC was also asked to confiscate shares in 19 business firms, three BO accounts and Tk30 lakh savings certificates.

On 12 June, the court ordered the seizure of eight more flats, garment factory shares, and other land properties belonging to the former police chief, his wife and their daughters.

Amid the investigation into the corruption allegations, Benazir and his family members left the country on 4 May.