ACC sues three ex-railway top officials over Tk322cr corruption
The case involves the purchase of 10 meter-gauge locomotives, where the ACC alleges officials abused power and manipulated the process
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against three former top officials of Bangladesh Railway, including its former director general, for allegedly causing a loss of Tk322 crore to the government through irregularities and forgery.
The case involves the purchase of 10 meter-gauge locomotive engines, where the ACC says the officials abused their authority and manipulated the process to facilitate the irregularities, ACC Deputy Director Akhtarul Islam confirmed today (18 September).
The accused are: Shamsuzzaman, former director general of Bangladesh Railway; Mofurul Alam Chowdhury, former additional director general; and Mohammad Hasan Monsur, former additional director general (development).
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According to the case statement, the accused individuals, in collusion with one another, abused their authority, committed criminal breach of trust, fraud, and forgery to benefit themselves and others by altering the purchase contract and tender specifications for the procurement of 10 meter-gauge (MG) diesel-electric locomotive engines.
They accepted substandard engines without the mandatory pre-shipment inspection (PSI) and, despite the engines failing to meet contractual conditions, falsely certified them as compliant. In doing so, they misappropriated over Tk1.36 crore and caused a loss of Tk322.68 crore to the government.
These acts constitute offences punishable under sections 409/420/467/468/471/109 of the Penal Code and section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947.
The ACC said that if further involvement of any other individuals or assets is found during investigation, they too will be brought under the purview of the law.
