Staff Correspondent

Former inspector general of police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed had forced Citizen TV Chairman Md Shafiqur Rahman to transfer a large stake of the private satellite television channel in the names of Benazir’s two daughters after picking him up from his Dhaka residence in the dead of night.

Shafiqur Rahman, now an Awami League MP from the Chandpur-4 constituency and former president of the National Press Club, was taken to the top police official at a city hotel around 1:00 am, the lawmaker claimed in a written statement sent to the Bangla daily, Samakal, on 30 May.

He sent the statement as the newspaper on the same day published a report under the headline “Benazir withdrew money before accounts frozen” where the report also mentioned the former IGP’s two daughters – Farheen Rishta Binte Benazir and Tahseen Raisa Binte Benazir, who have ownership of Citizen TV.

Although the television channel secured government approval in April 2017, it has not yet come on air. Shafiqur was the president of the Press Club in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 terms.

In his statement, the MP said, “I am the chairman (owner) of Citizen TV. Initially, there was no shareholder here and I did not either have the money to start its broadcast alone. One of my distant relatives, Razzakul Hossen Tutul, owner of the Root Group, requested that if I partner with him to begin operations, he will arrange Tk30 lakh-Tk40 lakh for the purpose. I agreed to his proposal.”

As time went by, the MP said, he finished the work meanwhile to get approval of the television channel.

“One day, a young man (whom I did not know before) came to my Banani residence between 12:30 am and 1:00 am. He picked me up and took me to Benazir at the Westin hotel.”

He said Benazir, Tutul, and two other unknown individuals, who seemed to be armed, were present there.

“Benazir handed me a yellow paper and asked me to sign it. As I started reading the paper, Benazir interrupted me and said that Citizen TV would be a sports-oriented channel. Pointing at the unknown men, he said they were sports-related persons and I had to come to an agreement with them. This paper is the contract document. At one stage, they spoke to me in a threatening tone. Around 2:00 am, I was forced to sign.”

Shafiqur said, “As I repeatedly urged Tutul to launch the television channel, he said Benazir would do everything. He (Tutul) had nothing to do. Then I went to the RJSC (Office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms) and found 30% shares of Citizen TV in my name, 15% shares each in the name of Benazir’s two daughters, and 40% shares in the name of Tutul and another person.

“Four to five years have passed in this way. I could not be able to do anything and they could not start the operations either excluding me as per the law.”

Benazir was the director general of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) when the television channel received government approval in 2017, while both of his daughters were students then.

A special notice deposit (SND) account was opened at the EXIM Bank in the name of Citizen TV. The television channel was registered in 2017-18, the account opening form mentioned.

It also mentioned Md Shafiqur Rahman as the chairman and Farheen Rishta Binte Benazir and Tahseen Raisa Binte Benazir as directors of the television channel.

One of the conditions for approval of Citizen TV was that it must go on air within a year and no shares could be transferred before going on air and until two years of complete broadcast.

When contacted, Shafiqur told the Bangla daily, “I was not informed that the paper I signed was the document of transferring shares. I was blackmailed and forced to sign.”

Benazir could not be reached for comment on the matter, the report said

Integrity Award and sanctions

Benazir Ahmed served as the IGP from 15 April 2020 to 30 September 2022. Prior to this, he was the commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police and the director general of the RAB. During his tenure as the RAB DG and the IGP, Benazir played a key role in curbing anti-government movements and militancy in the country. In recognition of his professional integrity, he was awarded the Integrity Award for 2020-21.

On 10 December 2021, the United States imposed human rights-related sanctions on the RAB and seven top officials, including Benazir.

Benazir’s corruption

Several newspapers, including the Kaler Kantho and the Daily Sun, in early April this year, published a series of reports detailing the wealth and properties allegedly acquired through illegal means by Benazir and his family members, which sparked widespread discussion across the country.

On 22 April, the Anti-Corruption Commission (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.

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 anti-graft watchdog, Judge Mohammad As-Shams Jaglul Hossain of Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge's Court on 23 May 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.

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, owned by Benazir and his family members.

The ACC said the court orders have been sent to the banks concerned to stop any transaction, and to the sub-registrar offices of the districts concerned so that the land properties in the name of Benazir and his family members cannot be sold or transferred.

On 29 May, ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan told reporters that the commission suspects Benazir might have laundered money abroad. So, the ACC requested the BFIU to send a Mutual Legal Assistance Request (MLAR) to determine whether Benazir holds assets in the United Arab Emirates, Canada, the USA, and other countries.

Considering the request, the BFIU sent letters to several countries seeking information about whether Benazir and his family members hold assets there, a BFIU official said.

According to recent media reports, the former IGP and his family members withdrew or transferred money from their bank accounts well before the Dhaka court ordered the freezing of those. However, it could not be known how much money was taken away from the bank accounts at the last moment.