BTRC Tk568cr embezzlement case: Bail of 12 accused cancelled
Members of the IOF executive committee were allegedly involved in embezzling money collected under the Market Development Fund, which was meant for network development
A Dhaka court has cancelled the bail of 12 accused in a case filed over the alleged embezzlement of Tk568 crore from the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).
The order was passed today (13 November) by Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Md Sabbir Faiz after a hearing.
Public Prosecutor Omar Faruk Faruki confirmed the development. He said the Dhaka CMM Court had granted bail to the 12 accused on 27 October in the BTRC embezzlement and fraud case.
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On 10 November, the state filed a revision petition with the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Court seeking cancellation of that bail order.
"The court granted our revision petition and ordered the cancellation of their bail," he said.
The accused whose bail has been cancelled are:
Syed Moinul Haque of the IGW Operators Forum (IOF) executive committee, Brigadier General (retd) Md Abdul Hannan, Ashik Ahmed, Gazi Md Salahuddin, Hafizur Rahman, Khalid Islam, Md Mahtabul Amin, Sohel Sharif, Tajin Alam, Nadir Shah Qureshi, Mir Nasir Hossain, and CCO Musfiq Manzur.
Earlier, on 18 September, BTRC Senior Assistant Director Tawfiqul Islam filed the case with Gulshan Police Station on allegations of fraud. The case names 27 defendants, including Salman F Rahman.
According to the case statement, after the formation of the IGW Operators Forum (IOF), its member companies violated licence conditions, breached trust and engaged in fraudulent activities to misappropriate funds.
Members of the IOF executive committee were allegedly involved in embezzling money collected under the Market Development Fund, which was meant for network development.
The case further claims that during the tenure of the ousted Awami League government, Salman F Rahman monopolised the International Gateway (IGW) sector responsible for handling international calls. Under his direct leadership, a syndicate named IOF was formed.
It also states that IGW operators were instructed by Salman F Rahman to deposit large sums every month to Beximco Computers Ltd, a company he owns, despite the firm having no licence to operate IGW services.
Although money was collected under the name of the Market Development Fund, IGW operators themselves were unaware of how the funds were actually used.
