ACC forms team to probe graft charges against Grameen Telecom
On 28 July, ACC Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain said the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments' deputy inspector general filed a report against the board of directors of the telecom company
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has formed a three-member team to investigate the board of directors of Grameen Telecom on allegations of embezzling the welfare funds of the employees and laundering around Tk3,000 crore.
ACC Deputy Director Gulshan Anwar Pradhan has been made the team head. The other members of the team are ACC Assistant Directors Jasmine Akhtar and Nur-e-Alam Siddiqui. ACC Director Syed Iqbal Hossain has been appointed as the supervising officer.
The agency also sent a letter to the CEO and managing director of Grameen Telecom on Sunday (31 July) asking for financial records from Grameen Telecom as part of its ongoing investigation against the company's board of directors facing allegations of embezzlement of funds from dividends for employees and money laundering.
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On 28 July, ACC Secretary Mahbub Hossain said that the agency will start an investigation against the board of directors of Grameen Telecom.
He said that the Deputy Inspector General of the Department of Inspection of Factories and Institutions, under the Ministry of Labor and Employment sent a report to the ACC containing some allegations against the board of directors of the Grameen Telecom Company. The commission reviewed the report containing the complaint and decided to investigate.
Allegations brought forth by the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments include - embezzling 5% of the money allotted for employees, illegally deducting advocate fees and other fees from the salary of workers, amassing more than Tk45.52 crore from welfare fund for workers and employees, and laundering Tk2,977 from the company.
In response to a question about whether Dr Muhammad Yunus, a member of the board of directors of Grameen Telecom, will be interrogated, the ACC secretary said, "The commission has just started the investigation. Once the investigating officer is appointed, you will know who is involved."
"The investigating officer will collect information from the members of the board of directors and conduct inquiries as per rules," Mahbub Hossain added.
