A court has ordered the seizure of land, including a multi-storey building in Gulshan, owned by Bashundhara Group Chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan and his family, as part of an investigation into corruption allegations against his wife Afroza Begum. It has also ordered the seizure of another large amount of land owned by her in the Bhatara area of Dhaka.
Acting Judge Md. Alamgir of the Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge’s Court issued the order on Thursday following an application by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). According to court sources, the multi-storey building built on 4.950 acres of land in Gulshan and 3.377 acres of land in Bhatara area have been ordered to be seized.
The ACC’s application states that there are allegations of money laundering against Ahmed Akbar Sobhan and his interested individuals and organizations. A 10-member investigation team has been formed to investigate these allegations. During the investigation, information was found that a large amount of wealth was acquired in the country and abroad and attempts were being made to transfer the immovable properties of the accused – it was mentioned that the seizure of the property was necessary due to the fear that there was an attempt to transfer the immovable properties.
Incidentally, after the political change, various agencies started investigating corruption and irregularities of big businessmen who benefited from the former government. In continuation of this, several agencies are investigating Bashundhara Group and its associates on charges of freezing their bank accounts, banning them from leaving the country, money laundering and land grabbing. Recently, the ACC has also filed a case against Ahmed Akbar Sobhan on charges of embezzling about Tk 600 crore from National Bank.