Dhaka, Nov 6 – The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed its own order that upheld the High Court verdict asking the government to return Tk 615 crore collected from 16 companies and individuals during the army-led caretaker government. A seven-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain came up with the order after accepting a review pleas filed by Bangladesh Bank authorities seeking to review of its verdict asking the central bank to return the money.
The apex court also asked Bangladesh Bank to submit concise statements before it containing all grounds on which it sought review of the verdict.
The apex court also kept in its records the petitions filed by 11 businesses seeking contempt proceedings against BB for not to return the money to them in 90 days as directed by the court in a verdict delivered on March 16, 2017.
The Supreme Court will now hear the review petition and deliver its order on the review pleas, Barrister M Amir-ul Islam, counsel for the Bangladesh Bank, told reporters after the apex court order.
Earlier, on August 29 last year, BB filed the petitions seeking review of a verdict the Appellate Division delivered on March 16, 2017, upholding the High Court Division’s directive to the BB to refund the
money to the businessmen within 90 days and declared the process of extraction of the money by DGFI from business concerns.
The directives require BB to return Tk 189 crore to East-West Property Ltd, Tk 52 crore to Meghna Cement, Tk 15 crore to Bashundhara Paper Mills, Tk 60 crore to S Alam Steels Mills Ltd, Tk 237.65 crore to Consolidated Tea and Lands Bangladesh Ltd, Tk 1.9 crore to Unique Eastern Pvt Ltd, Tk 70 lakh to Unique Ceramics Industries Pvt Ltd, Tk 17.55 crore to Unique Hotel and Resort, Tk 65 lakh to Unique Group managing director Mohad Noor Ali, Tk 7.10 crore to Borak Real Estate and Tk 35 crore to Eastern Housing Limited.
On March 16, 2017, in an 89-page verdict, the Appellate Division censured the DGFI for its interference with the executive branch at different times.
In the verdict, the Appellate Division said, ‘Though DGFI denied its role in the extortion of the money, the documents filed by the Bangladesh Bank clearly show that the money has been collected by Md Afzal Naser Bhuiyan, Lt Col for DGFI. He sent the money on the letterhead of DGFI to the Bangladesh Bank for taking action by the governor.’
The verdict said that neither the DGFI nor any other intelligence agency had any right or authority to recover such money as tax or VAT.
‘Article 83 of the Constitution totally prohibits such process of realising any money other than an Act of Parliament stipulates,’ it said.
The caretaker government led by Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed launched ‘so-called drive’ against corruption by the politicians, bureaucrats and business organisations. During that time, many people and companies were allegedly harassed and extorted.
More than Tk 1,200 crore was reportedly realised from different companies and individuals and was deposited to the national exchequer during the caretaker regime. – Staff Reporter
