Staff Correspondent

An extensive investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has revealed that 24 ministers, advisers, and members of parliament from the ousted Awami League government held dual citizenships, permanent residency cards, or amassed massive illicit wealth abroad during their terms in office.

The findings bring to light a widespread pattern of hidden foreign ties and financial accumulation among top-tier policymakers of the past regime, which constitutional provisions strictly prohibit. According to Article 66 of the Bangladesh Constitution, acquiring foreign citizenship or owing allegiance to a foreign state disqualifies an individual from serving as a Member of Parliament or holding ministerial office.

Focus on former Sandip MP Mita :

Among those caught in the anti-graft net is Mahfuzur Rahman Mita, former Member of Parliament for the Chattogram-3 (Sandip) constituency and chairman of Rupali Life Insurance Company Limited.

The ACC filed a formal corruption case against the former Sandip lawmaker for allegedly accumulating illegal wealth worth approximately Tk 9.88 crore beyond his known sources of income. Investigators scrutinized his income tax returns from the 2002–03 to 2024–25 assessment years, uncovering major discrepancies. According to the anti-graft agency, Mita reported substantial income from business and fisheries sectors but failed to provide admissible documentary evidence to support those earnings. Furthermore, investigators rejected unverified claims of loans amounting to Tk 3.75 crore purportedly received from his wife, concluding that her income sources could not substantiate such transactions. After factoring in family expenditures, the ACC found him in possession of disproportionate assets valued at nearly Tk 9.88 crore, leading to charges under the Anti-Corruption Commission Act and the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Beyond the case involving the former Sandip lawmaker, the broader ACC probe mapped out an extensive web of foreign citizenships and residency permits among former high-ranking state officials.

The investigation found that former Prime Minister's adviser Salman F. Rahman secretly acquired citizenship in Cyprus, while former Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud holds a permanent residency card for Belgium.

Five former ministers and state ministers—namely AHM Mustafa Kamal, Md. Tajul Islam, Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, and Md. Mahbub Ali—were identified as British citizens. Meanwhile, seven other individuals, consisting of four former ministers/state ministers and three former MPs, were found to hold US citizenship or green cards. This group includes Abdus Shahid, Nasrul Hamid Bipu, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, Mohammad Ali Arafat, Abdus Sobhan Miah (Golap), Mahfuzur Rahman, and Salauddin Mahmud Zahid.

The probe also identified six individuals with Canadian citizenship, including former minister Abdur Rahman alongside former MPs Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Alauddin Ahmed Chowdhury (Nasim), Shamim Osman, Shafiqul Islam (Shimul), and Habib Hasan. Additional cases include former Local Government Minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain holding Swiss citizenship, former Railways Minister Zillul Hakim possessing a Japanese residency card, former MP Tanvir Hasan (Chhoto Monir) registered as a German citizen, and former MP M.A. Wahed holding citizenship in Papua New Guinea.

The investigation further exposed that several of these figures built massive property portfolios overseas. Former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury alone purchased 620 properties across the United States, United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates between 2016 and 2021, with an estimated market value of roughly Tk 5,724 crore ($480 million). Similarly, figures like Salman F. Rahman, AHM Mustafa Kamal, and Shamim Osman were found to own multiple residential properties, country estates, and substantial business investments spanning London, Toronto, and Dubai.