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DU riot spontaneous: Commission

[Dhaka Correspondent] The judicial commission formed to investigate the August 20-22 incidents at the Dhaka University campus observed that the students’ agitation at the university playground after several students were assaulted by some army men was spontaneous.

“Students’ agitation on August 22 was spontaneous but later it was diverted for external interest,” said commission chief Justice Habibur Rahman Khan. He made his observations after interviewing two top leaders of the university teachers association Monday. The commission recorded statements by the provost of Jagannath Hall, Neem Chandra Bhowmik and dean of social sciences faculty Harun-or- Rashid Monday. The commission also began interviewing the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal president, Azizul Bari Helal. Till Monday, a total of 86 persons testified before the commission.

After the interviews, Justice Habib said Harun told him that he had attended all the teachers’ association meetings and the decisions were not his own rather reflection of 250 general members of the association. Harun said he did not know why the students’ procession joined the DUTA declared silent procession, revealed the commissioner.

“Neem Chandra denied his involvement with the incidents by any means and he claimed himself a rights activist who surrendered to the court when he was implicated in the charge-sheet,” Habibur said.

BNP meetings blocked: Delwar

[Dhaka Correspondent] BNP secretary general, Khandaker Delwar Hossain, Monday accused the government of not allowing the party to hold indoor political programmes. “We sought permission for holding programmes at hotels or other places in accordance with the guidelines announced by the government. But the authorities are not giving us permission,” he told newsmen at his Dhaka residence. “BNP central office in Naya Paltan is still locked despite easing of restrictions on indoor political activities.”

He said the authorities did not allow him to meet the detained party chairperson, Khaleda Zia, despite repeated appeals. “I was not allowed to meet the chairperson to make a decision on the dialog on electoral reforms with the Election Commission. We cannot decide this without talking to her.” He hoped that the jail authorities would allow him to immediately meet the chairperson.

Delwar renewed his call for lifting the state of emergency and complete withdrawal of restrictions on politics. “A congenial political atmosphere will return if the state of emergency is lifted, open politics allowed and two leaders [Khaleda Zia of BNP and Sheikh Hasina of Awami League] are freed. It will also make the path to democracy easier.”

He expressed his satisfaction with High Court’s ruling on the GATCO graft case against Khaleda. “Granting of bail by the High Court in the GATCO case did justice to Khaleda Zia,” he said hoping that she would be released from jail soon.

On the statement of British high commissioner Anwar Chowdhury that “the future elections in Bangladesh will not depend on any person,” Delwar, also former chief whip in parliament, said, “I leave it to diplomatic norms as to how much he [Anwar] is allowed to comment on our politics.”

ACC moves aganist Khaleda bail

[Dhaka Correspondent] ACC (Anti-Corruption Commission) Monday filed a petition with the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court seeking stay of the High Court order granting bail to detained former prime minister Khaleda Zia in the GATCO graft case. It is expected to come up for hearing Tuesday, Khalequzzaman, advocate-on-record for ACC, told newsmen after filing the petition.

It mentioned that a regular petition would be filed seeking permission to appeal against the High Court order issued Sunday upon writ petitions. The High Court bench of Justice Shah Abu Nayeem Mominur Rahman and Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury Sunday granted bail to Khaleda in the case. The High Court also stayed the proceedings of the GATCO scam case against Khaleda and her younger son, Arafat Rahman, filed under the Emergency Powers Rules.

After hearing the writ petitions, the court also ordered Anti-Corruption Commission and chief metropolitan magistrate of Dhaka to explain in six weeks the legality of bringing the case under the Emergency Powers Rules.

Commission deputy director, Golam Shahriar Chowdhury, filed the corruption case on September 2 with the Tejgaon police against 13 people, including Khaleda and Arafat, on charge of awarding a contract to “an incompetent and unfit firm, GATCO,” to handle containers at the Inland Container Depot in Dhaka and at Chittagong port allegedly for kickbacks.

Tarique, others cases stayed

[Dhaka Correspondent] The High Court Monday stayed the proceedings of the cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission against former prime minister Khaleda Zia’s eldest son, Tarique Rahman, and former ministers Moudud Ahmed and Nazmul Huda. ACC filed cases against them for amassing illegal wealth. The High Court bench of Justice Shah Abu Nayeem Mominur Rahman and Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury also asked ACC to explain in six weeks why the notices it served on the three BNP stalwarts asking for their wealth statements should not be declared illegal. ACC was also asked to explain why the cases filed against them in the furtherance of the notifications should not be declared illegal and void.

The court passed the orders after hearing separate writ petitions filed by the three challenging the legality of the ACC notices and cases against them. Those writ petitions were the first in challenging the legality of any case filed by the ACC on charges of amassing illegal wealth and concealing information in wealth reports.

The counsel for the three BNP leaders did not press for bail for any of them. The court, however, refused to grant bail to former communication minister Nazmul Huda’s wife and Sigma Huda. She was sued by the ACC along with her husband for abetting him in concealing facts.

The same court Sunday stayed the proceedings of the GATCO scam case against the BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia and her younger son, Arafat Rahman, under the Emergency Powers Rules and granted bail to Khaleda. The court had, however, turned down Arafat’s bail prayer.

Pleading for Moudud, Huda and Tarique, their counsel Rafique-ul-Huq told the court that the ACC had asked them to submit wealth reports in violation of the constitution and laws. According to the Anti-Corruption Commission Act and Anti-Corruption Commission rules, before asking a person to submit his wealth statement, ACC has to be certain, after investigation, that he owns wealth beyond his legitimate income. The counsel claimed that ACC served notices to Moudud on July 3, Huda on February 18 and Tarique on May 29 without any proper investigation of their wealth.

ACC assistant director Talebur Rahman filed a case against Nazmul Huda and Sigma Huda with the Dhanmandi police on July 11. Huda was arrested on February 5 and Sigma later surrendered to court.

ACC deputy assistant director Shariful Haque Siddiqui lodged a case with the Gulshan thana against Moudud for concealing information of his assets worth Taka 4,40,37,375 in his wealth report and amassing assets of Taka 7,38,48,237, beyond his known sources of income. He was arrested on April 13.

On September 26, ACC filed a case with Kafrul police station accusing Tarique, also senior joint secretary general of BNP, his wife Zubaida Rahman and mother-in-law Syeda Iqbalmand Banu, for concealing wealth information. Tarique was arrested on March 7. Tarique was charged for amassing wealth of over Taka 4.82 crore illegally and concealing information of property worth over Taka 4.23 crore in his wealth statement submitted to ACC. His wife and mother-in-law were accused of aiding and abetting him in protecting his wealth.

Hunt for tax-evaders

[Dhaka Correspondent] NBR (National Board of Revenue) will hunt the bigwigs with untaxed money who avoided the offer to legalize their hidden assets by September 30. “We will try to identify those who refrained from whitening their huge untaxed money,” NBR chairman Badiur Rahman told newsmen Monday, a day after the latest scheme to legalize undisclosed incomes expired. The next drive for netting large-scale tax-evaders will not harm the economy in any way, he noted.

A total of Taka 5213.30 crore was whitened until September 30 as 42,459 individuals and companies used the opportunity from June 5 till September 30. Of them, 16,532 rushed to the tax offices the last day. The offer generated a tax income of Taka 802.40 crore, mainly from middle income taxpayers.

“I expected around Taka 1500 crore in tax income from the scheme,” a frustrated revenue chief said, regretting that white-collar tax-evaders, who were catalysts for and key targets of the scheme, largely stayed out. It was middle and lower middle classes people, who crowded into the tax offices to legalize whatever they had to declare and legalize. “I saw people paying even Taka 2000 or Taka 3000 as taxes to legalize their incomes, while big shots did not show up,” Badiur Rahman said Sunday, the last day of the offer that remained open for about four months.

NBR launched the campaign on June 5 and kept it open until July 31 in the first phase. It was later extended for two months to September 30 to give individuals and businesses further chance to legalize their hidden incomes and investments just paying usual tax plus 5 per cent penalty. The scheme did not apply to incomes earned through unfair means and investments made in illegitimate businesses. Individuals and businesses facing tax evasion charges and legal actions were also barred from availing of the money whitening opportunity.