Dhaka North’s tax supervisor suspended over graft allegation

Dhaka North City Corporation has suspended its revenue supervisor of Zone-3 Mehedi Hasan Rishad on allegations of negligence in duty, misconduct, inefficiency, and corruption.

The city corporation issued a letter regarding the suspension today (11 December).

This action was taken under sub-rule (1) of Rule 55 of the North City Corporation Employee Employment Rules, 2019, said the letter.

On 26 November, The Business Standard published a report on how the DNCC official sought bribes from flat owners in the capital's Gulshan area, asking them to submit documents for the re-evaluation of their holding taxes.

TBS conducted a deeper investigation into Risad's operations and uncovered that complaints against him extend well beyond the flats of Rangs Waterfront.

A case of how Dhaka North’s tax supervisor extorts flat owners

Risad has reportedly issued holding tax re-evaluation notices to around 2,000 holdings under his jurisdiction in Gulshan, demanding bribes ranging from Tk2 lakh to Tk10 lakh.

He orchestrates a massive bribery operation, targeting holdings in Gulshan, Baridhara, and Banani, aiming to collect at least Tk40 crore through threats counting high taxes. Both the bribe giver and receiver benefit from these transactions, which is why such incidents often go unreported.

Investigations also revealed that Risad conducts these transactions and agreements openly from his office and meticulously records the details of bribes in a ledger.