Tulip Siddique, with ex-Rajuk official facing property misappropriation charges over Gulshan flat

Following the case against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has approved a charge sheet against her niece and UK MP Tulip Rizwan Siddique, along with former Rajuk assistant legal adviser Sardar Mosharraf Hossain, over allegations of receiving an "illegal benefit" in the form of a flat from Eastern Housing Limited in Dhaka's Gulshan area.

ACC Director General Md Akhtar Hossain confirmed yesterday that the decision to approve the charge sheet had been taken from the commission's headquarters. While former Rajuk assistant legal adviser Shah Md Khasruzzaman was also named in the case, his appeal is still pending, so he has been excluded from the charge sheet for the time being.  Assistant Director AKM Murtaza Ali Sagar is expected to submit the charge sheet to the court soon.

According to the investigation report, in 1963, Justice Imam Hossain Chowdhury was allocated a plot in Gulshan measuring 1 bigha, 19 katha, and 13 decimal. Under the government lease agreement, the plot could not be transferred or subdivided for 99 years. 

However, in 1973, he transferred the plot to Md Mojibur Rahman Bhuiya, giving him the Power of Attorney. The plot was later subdivided and sold, and construction began through Eastern Housing Limited under its chairman, Zahurul Islam. Following Zahurul Islam's death, disputes arose among his heirs, leading to ongoing litigation.

Even though the case was still pending and the lease forbade any transfer, Rajuk's legal advisers authorised Eastern Housing to proceed with transferring the flats, which was illegal, as the company was neither the leaseholder nor a lawful representative. According to Rajuk records, the lease conditions did not allow transfer before the 99-year period expired. 

Nevertheless, Eastern Housing was authorised through a Power of Attorney to subdivide the plot and construct 36 flats. The lease terms were violated, and the transfer was arranged illegally under Tulip Siddique's influence. In return, she received one of the flats free of charge as an "illegal benefit."

The investigation claims that by influencing Eastern Housing to secure approval for the transfer and taking the flat herself, Tulip Rizwan Siddique committed punishable offences under sections 120B, 409, 161, 162, 163, 164, 165(a), and 109 of the Penal Code, along with Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947.

Evidence from the probe shows that Eastern Housing Limited's documents record Tulip Rizwan Siddique as receiving the flat without payment. She held the post from 19 May 2001, during Sheikh Hasina's tenure as Prime Minister. 

The investigation also found that at the 2015–2016 tax year, the ownership of the flat, Plot No NE(A)-11B, Flat B/201, Gulshan, was transferred to her younger sister, Azmina Siddique, as a gift. The flat remains registered in Tulip's name, and she has been paying the holding tax.