The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed four separate cases against former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury Javed and several members of his family over allegations of embezzling crores of Taka by falsely classifying farmers as businessmen to secure bank loans.
The cases were lodged on Tuesday at the ACC Chattogram Coordinated District Office-1, ACC Deputy Director Subel Ahmed confirmed.
According to the complaints, branches of United Commercial Bank (UCB), owned by the former minister’s family, allegedly opened fraudulent accounts in the names of four farmers. These individuals were falsely portrayed as business owners, and loans worth several crores were reportedly approved and later misappropriated.
In two of the cases, Javed and his wife, former UCB Chairperson Rukmila Zaman, are named as the main accused. Other family members, including his brothers Anisuzzaman Chowdhury Roni and Asifuzzaman Chowdhury, as well as former UCB director Bashir Ahmed, have also been implicated. Javed’s sister, Roksana Zaman Chowdhury, has been named in two cases.
In one case, a farmer named Yunus was reportedly portrayed as the owner of ‘United Trading.’ Fake documents and unsigned papers were allegedly used to open a bank account, through which Tk 9.99 crore was embezzled.
Another case involves farmer Nurul Bashar, who was allegedly presented as the proprietor of ‘Bashar International.’ Loans amounting to Tk 8 crore were reportedly taken and misappropriated, with 17 people, including the former minister, named in the case.
The third case alleged that a farmer named Faridul Alam, whose name was allegedly used to register ‘Unique Enterprise,’ with Tk 8.5 crore misappropriated.
The fourth case involves farmer Ayub, reportedly presented as the owner of ‘Mohammadiya Enterprise,’ through which Tk 5.2 crore was allegedly embezzled. Fifteen individuals are accused in this case.
Bashir Ahmed, the former UCB director, has been named as a primary accused in all four cases. The ACC stated that the bank accounts were opened using fake mobile numbers and unsigned documents.
Deputy Director Subel Ahmed said the cases were filed under Sections 406, 420, 467, 468, 471, and 109 of the Penal Code, Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1947, and Sections 4(2) and 4(3) of the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
