Court orders two associates of PK Halder to surrender by June 4
Court Correspondent
The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court has ordered the two associates of Prashant Kumar Halder, also known as PK Halder, to surrender by June 4.
A seven-judge appellate bench headed by Justice M Enayetur Rahim passed the order on Thursday.
The two associates are –the then International Leasing and Financial Services Director Papia Banerjee and her husband Director Basudeb Banerjee.
On May 9, the High Court granted six weeks of anticipatory bail to Basudev Banerjee and Papia Banerjee in 15 cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
Deputy Attorney General AKM Amin Uddin Manik said that although granted bail, they have been instructed to surrender their passports to the court and barred them from travelling abroad without permission
According to lawyer Nurul Islam Sujan, the couple, as directors, did not participate in board meetings nor were they involved in the decision-making process regarding lending or recovery.
Allegations suggest their signatures were forged, and the company's operations were mainly overseen by the chairman and managing director.
Basudev and Papia Banerjee have not transferred any funds or loans to themselves or any other shareholder company, nor have they derived any benefits.
In 2021, the ACC filed embezzlement and money laundering cases against Basudev and his wife. PK Halder is one of the accused in these cases.
On 8 October 2023, a Dhaka court sentenced PK Halder to 22 years in prison. His 13 associates were also sentenced to seven years in prison each.
PK Halder is currently in jail in India.
