Purbachal plot scam: Arguments in case against Hasina, Tulip, Azmina on 13 January
17 of the accused, including Sheikh Hasina and members of her family, are currently absconding and thus lost the opportunity to provide a defence statement.
A Dhaka court set 13 January for hearing the closing arguments in a corruption case filed against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her niece Tulip Siddiq, Azmina Siddiq, and 15 others over the illegal allocation of a Rajuk plot.
Judge Rabiul Alam of the Special Judge Court-4 passed the order this noon (8 January) after the conclusion of the witness testimony phase. The court has so far recorded the depositions of all 31 witnesses listed in the case.
Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Public Prosecutor Zahirul Islam confirmed that the date for arguments was fixed as the accused failed to produce any defence witnesses. Mohammad Khurshid Alam, a former Rajuk member and the only accused currently behind bars, declined to testify in his own defence.
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The remaining 17 accused, including Sheikh Hasina and members of her family, are currently absconding and thus lost the opportunity to provide a defence statement.
The case was initially filed on 13 January last year by ACC Assistant Director Afnan Jannat Keya. According to the charge sheet, Hasina and her family members allegedly abused state power during her tenure to unlawfully secure a 10-katha plot in the Purbachal New Town project.
Investigators found that the accused concealed information regarding their existing properties within Rajuk-governed areas to qualify for the allotment. The plot was reportedly secured without a formal application and through the direct influence of the then-prime minister on Rajuk officials.
The charge sheet, submitted on 10 March last year, named a total of 18 individuals.
Alongside the former prime minister and her family, the accused include the former Ministry of Housing and Public Works' senior assistant secretary Purobi Goldar, administrative officer Md Saiful Islam Sarkar, former Rajuk chairman's personal assistant Md Anisur Rahman Miah, former Rajuk members Shafi Ul Haque, Mohammad Khurshid Alam, Mohammad Nasir Uddin, Major (retd) Samsuddin Ahmed Chowdhury, Deputy Director Nayeb Ali Sharif, former secretaries Qazi Wasi Uddin and Shahid Ullah Khandaker, and former state minister Sharif Ahmed.
This case is part of a series of corruption cases filed by the anti-graft body's in early 2025 targeting the Sheikh family's alleged involvement in the Purbachal plot scam.
Similar cases are in due process in Special Judge Court-5 involving Hasina's son Sajeeb Wazed Joy and daughter Saima Wazed Putul. In which, they have been convicted of their crimes.
Sheikh Hasina has been facing a wave of legal proceedings, including corruption charges and trials at the International Crimes Tribunal, since her government was ousted in a student-led mass uprising on 5 August 2024.
