Sadeeq Agro breeding banned Brahman cows: ACC
A nine-member ACC team, headed by the graft body’s Assistant Director Abul Kalam Azad, led a drive at the farm located in Savar where they found documents listing the Brahman cows
Seven Brahman calves were found listed among the cattle in a Sadeeq Agro farm, while five Brahman cows were inseminated in the last month, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) said today (1 July).
A nine-member ACC team, headed by the graft body's Assistant Director Abul Kalam Azad, led a drive at the farm located in Savar.
They, however, did not see the cows.
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After the operation, the ACC assistant director told reporters, "Seven Brahman calves of 7-10 months of age were found [listed at the farm]. Their sale or transfer has been prohibited.
"We have seized the farm's sperm account and butcher's account. We found that five Brahman cows have been inseminated in the last month."
The Brahman cattle, however, have been banned since 2016.
Back then, the government stopped the production and import of Brahman cattle, import of semen of Brahman bulls and its artificial insemination.
Rony, who works at Sadeeq Agro, denied the ACC's claims stating that there are no Brahman cows in the farm.
"Sadeeq Agro used to have genuine Brahman breed. I was raising those as well. But that was before. Now they're all gone."
Sadeeq Agro's Mohammadpur farm was completely demolished on 29 June for illegally occupying the Ramchandrapur canal and adjacent roads.
The farm, recently implicated in the so-called "goat scandal", had encroached upon the canal site for years and the silence of city authorities on this matter all these years raised various questions.
Earlier on the day, while raiding the government-owned Central Cattle Breeding and Dairy Farm in Savar, the ACC officials questioned the farm's Director Md Monirul Islam.
Based on the information received from there, the ACC team then raided the Savar farm of Sadeeq Agro.
Monirul left his office immediately after the ACC's interrogation. Several journalists tried to talk to him but he did not respond. Later, he was called and messaged again on his number but till now no statement was received from him.
How the ACC got involved
Sadeeq farm once tried to import Brahman cow despite ban since 2016.
On 5 July 2021, dairy farm Sadeeq, a concern of Sadeeq Agro Limited, attempted to import 18 cows of Brahman breed without prior permission from the authorities concerned and without opening a letter of credit (LC).
The cows were imported from the US using false documentation claiming they were part of the Sahiwal breed.
They were seized by the customs officials at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
The matter was heard at the High Court, which, on 3 August the same year, upheld the customs officials' decision to seize the cows.
The cows were sent to Savar Cow Breeding and Dairy Farm by the government and were being kept there.
From 2021 to 2023, these seized cows were reared at the Central Cattle Breeding and Dairy Farm.
Then, the company announced an auction to sell them for meat.
"Initially, a committee was formed in 2023 to fulfil the demand for meat, and 16 cows were transferred to the Dairy Farmers' Association at a nominal price," said ACC Official Abul Kalam Azad after the raid.
However, then arose allegations of the cows being bought back by Sadeeq Agro at a cheaper price instead.
"Today's operation mainly focuses on how those cows ended up at Sadeeq Agro," the ACC official said today.
The ACC official further said, "Nothing is known yet about the 16 cows that were taken by the Dairy Farmers' Association. However, information about the cows that have been inseminated and the calves that are there will be given to the commission. The commission will take appropriate action in this regard later.
"Both production and import of Brahman cows are banned [in the country]. However, according to their [Sadeeq Agro] ledgers, some information about sperm collection has been found. Also, we heard earlier that they had two farms in Dhaka, but now we hear there are four. Those farms will also be raided."
