Tax intelligence probes 150 engineers, judges, passport officials for high-level evasion

Infograph: TBS

Highlights:

• ITIIU probes 150 officials for concealing income and assets
• Six officials admitted evasion, paid Tk1 crore each
• Targets include engineers, judges, and passport officers nationwide
• Investigations reveal undeclared assets worth crores in multiple cases
• Tk2,000 crore in evasion uncovered; Tk118 crore recovered
• Bank accounts frozen, asset records sought from various institutions

In a major sweep against tax evasion in recent years, the Income Tax Intelligence and Investigation Unit (ITIIU) has launched probes into 150 individuals — including government engineers, judges, and passport officials — for allegedly concealing income/ assets.

Confirming the development, Mohammad Abdur Rakib, commissioner of the ITIIU – the intelligence wing of the Income Tax Dept, told TBS, "We have initiated inquiries into the tax files of these individuals. Preliminary findings suggest almost all of them have concealed income and assets to evade taxes."

"Six of them have already admitted to the evasion and settled their dues, with each paying no less than Tk1 crore," he added. 

The list is dotted with powerful designations – about 100 officials from the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), Roads and Highways, Public Health Engineering, City Corporations, the Power Development Board, and the Education Engineering Department are under the scanner. 

Joining them are 25 judges, 10 immigration and passport officers, and others from WASA, the Directorate of Registration, and beyond.

According to sources inside the Tax Intelligence Office, confidential data triggered the probe. What followed was a meticulous combing through of tax files, revealing a pattern of under-reported income, mismatched asset declarations, and a trail of questionable wealth.

In two telling examples, an official from Sylhet City Corporation and an executive engineer of LGED were found to be sitting on Tk10 crore worth of undeclared assets. One of them has since coughed up Tk1 crore in taxes, a silent confession amid growing scrutiny.

Officials say that preliminary findings point to almost every individual under probe having concealed income. While six officials admitted their guilt and settled their dues with the tax office, the rest are facing ongoing investigations, which officials say could unravel deeper, systemic abuse of power for personal gain.

This is not just an exercise in balancing books. The ITIIU, over the past six months, has examined tax records of around 300 individuals and organisations, unearthing tax evasion to the tune of Tk2,000 crore. Of that, Tk118 crore has already been collected, signalling a determined push to hold even the mighty accountable.

Sources within the Tax Intelligence Office said investigators are now reviewing both declared and undeclared movable and immovable assets of 150 individuals. 

To trace concealed income, it has sought information from various banks, financial institutions, real estate developers, the Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB), land offices, the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), and other relevant government and non-government departments.

Inside the files

An official of the Tax Intelligence Unit, speaking to TBS on condition of anonymity, said that among the six who settled due taxes is the chief engineer of Sylhet City Corporation, who admitted to concealing Tk1 crore in taxes, combining his own and his wife's undeclared income, and has since paid the dues.

However, when contacted, the chief engineer said, "I have no assets outside my tax file and no illegal income."

The Tax Intelligence official told TBS, "If there was no evasion, then why did he pay the tax?"

Also on the list is an executive engineer of Sylhet LGED. During the previous Awami League government, he served as LGED executive engineer in Faridpur when Engineer Mosharraf Hossain was LGRD minister and later served in Cumilla while Tajul Islam was the LGRD minister.

The Tax Intelligence official said that over 80 fixed deposits (FDRs) have been found in the names of this LGED executive engineer, his wife, and his daughter in various banks. In FY2019-20, his wife legalised Tk1.5 crore in black money and showed fake income from a fish farm. 

"We have found evidence of more than Tk3 crore in tax evasion," the official said.

The Tax Intelligence Unit has already frozen all their bank accounts. A copy of the related documents has also come into The Business Standard's possession.

When contacted, the LGED engineer denied allegations of illegal income or tax evasion. "There is no problem with my tax file," he said.

However, he acknowledged that his bank accounts have been frozen and that his tax file is being assessed by the Tax Intelligence Office.

He said, "They are assessing my tax file, and I hope the account will be unfrozen soon."

According to Tax Intelligence sources, his lawyer has been discussing these matters at the Tax Intelligence office in Agargaon, Dhaka, and plans to visit again next week.

In addition, the tax files of 25 judges are under investigation, including 18 judges who were sent to forced retirement on 10 July. Among these 18 judges, 15 are district judges, two are additional district judges, and one is a joint district judge.

Before this drive, the ITIIU had already started investigations into over 300 individuals — including government officials, police officers, judges, artists, journalists, and former lawmakers, including 50 female members of the last parliament.

The Income Tax Department does not probe the illegal income of taxpayers or impose penalties. But it can find and tax undeclared assets found beyond filed returns. 

As tax evasion investigators, the Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) and the ITIIU operate under the National Board of Revenue (NBR). 

Additionally, two separate units — the VAT Intelligence and the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Unit — handle evasion related to VAT and customs, respectively.