Arrest warrants issued against BNP's Aslam Chowdhury, wife in Tk260cr loan default case

A Chattogram court has issued arrest warrants against BNP central executive committee member Aslam Chowdhury and his wife, Nazneen Maola Chowdhury, in connection with a loan default case involving more than Tk260 crore.

Judge Md Helal Uddin of Chattogram's Money Loan Court-1 passed the order this afternoon following a hearing. Bench assistant of the court, Mohammad Ershad, confirmed the matter to The Business Standard.

According to court sources, Standard Bank's Pahartali branch had disbursed the loan against mortgaged assets. However, despite attempts, the bank failed to recover the outstanding loan by auctioning the mortgaged properties, as no buyers were willing to purchase them. Following the bank's petition, the court issued arrest warrants for Aslam and his wife over the unpaid amount, which totals Tk260.77 crore.

Aslam Chowdhury was previously released on bail in July last year after the fall of the Awami League government during the mass uprising. Over the years, he has faced at least 76 different cases.

In May 2016, Aslam was arrested in Dhaka's Khilkhet area. The following day, he was shown arrested under Section 54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and placed on remand. Later that same month, with the approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs, police filed a sedition case against him at Gulshan Police Station, accusing him of conspiring to overthrow the government in collaboration with an foreign agents.