The Anti-Corruption Commission on Wednesday filed three cases against nine people, including former state minister Mannujan Sufian and former Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam on charges of corruption.
The commission also initiated an inquiry against former Air Force chief, Air Chief Marshal Sheikh Abdul Hannan, over allegations of abuse of power, embezzlement of public money, bribery, recruitment irregularities, and money laundering.
Three cases were filed with the ACC鈥檚 integrated district office in Dhaka-1 accusing Mannujan Sufian and Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam and seven others of graft charges, said ACC director general (prevention) Md Aktar Hossain at a press briefing at the commission headquarters in Dhaka.
ACC deputy director Masudur Rahman filed a case against former BSEC chairman Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam and five others on charges of taking bribes of Tk 3.76 crore.
The other accused are Javeed A Matin, the chairman of Monarch Holdings, Ariful Islam, the owner of Xin Bangla Fabrics, Israt Jahan, an FAVP of Mutual Trust Bank, Iqbal Hossain, a vice president and branch operation manager of the same bank, and Syed Mahbub Morshed, the SEVP of the Audit and Inspection Department and former branch manager of the bank.
According to the case document, Shibli allegedly accepted a bribe of Tk 1.92 crore through a fake house rent agreement. This money was transferred from Monarch Holding, owned by Jaaved A Matin, to Shibli鈥簊 personal bank account through four transactions.
Besides, Shibli is accused of receiving Tk 1.84 crore through fraudulent export transactions by fabricating a fake product sales contract, bringing the total bribery amount to Tk 3.76 crore.
Earlier, the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police arrested Shibli in the capital鈥檚 Dhanmondi area Tuesday night.
Shibli resigned as the BSEC chairman prematurely five days after the fall of the Awami League regime amid a mass uprising on August 5, 2024.
The ACC also filed two cases against former state minister Mannujan Sufian on charges of abuse of power to grant promotions improperly.
According to the case documents, Mannujan Sufian is accused of promoting Mizanur Rahman to the post of director, bypassing the 3rd-ranked candidate, Shamima Sultana Bari, who was recommended by the Departmental Promotion Committee of the Labour Directorate.
Mizanur, who ranked 16th on the list, was promoted from deputy director to director, an action the ACC claims was an abuse of power. As a result, both Mannujan and Mizanur were named as accused in the first case.
Apart from this, it was reported that Mannujan promoted Abdullah Al Sakib Mubarrat, ranked 48th on the DPC list, from assistant director to deputy director, bypassing the qualified candidate, Jobeda Khatun. This led to a second case, in which Mannujan and Abdullah Al Sakib Mubarrat were named as accused.
The ACC has also initiated an inquiry against former Air Force Chief, Air Chief Marshal Sheikh Abdul Hannan, over allegations of corruption, said ACC spokesperson Md Aktar Hossain.
The inquiry follows a complaint filed by lawyer M Sarwar Hossain, which prompted the ACC鈥檚 inquiry into Hannan鈥檚 alleged amassing of illegal wealth and money laundering.