HC orders ACC to probe AL MP Golap's alleged 9 homes in New York

The High Court on Monday directed the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to dispose of the application seeking a probe into the reports of Awami League MP Abdus Sobhan Miah Golap allegedly owning nine properties worth around $4 million in New York.

An HC bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Khizir Hayat passed the order after hearing a writ petition filed by Barrister Saydul Haque Sumon in this regard.

Besides, ACC was directed to submit the investigation report within the next four months.

Earlier on Sunday, Barrister Sumon sought the issuance of an HC rule asking why the government's inaction in investigating Golap's corruption allegations should not be declared illegal. 

Speaking with The Business Standard, the Supreme Court lawyer said, "I have moved the issue with the HC after not getting any response from the ACC [Anti-Corruption Commission] despite making an official complaint against Golap.

"The matter may be heard this week by the bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Khizir Hayat."

On 17 February, the ruling party publicity and publications secretary filed a Tk500 crore defamation case against barrister Sumon for spreading "false and defamatory" information about Golap on social media platforms and to the ACC.

"Sumon propagated that Abdus Sobhan laundered money after becoming a member of parliament in 2014-2015 which is not true. Abdus Sobhan became a member of parliament in the 2018 national election," read the case statement.

"After becoming a member of parliament, he [Sobhan] did not buy a house in the United States," it added.

According to a report by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), a global network of investigative journalists, the lawmaker concealed information about being a US citizen and owning nine properties in New York City in his election affidavit in 2018.

Golap bought the properties between 2014 and 2019. Of the nine properties, which cost Golap about $4 million, eight were bought with upfront cash payments.

His last purchase – a semi-detached house in Jackson Heights which costs $1.18 million – was made through a small mortgage and cash in 2019, after he became an MP, said OCCRP report.

The investigation also found no viable source of income in the US that would have enabled him to buy the properties.

He made ends meet through a series of low-paying jobs like driving an unlicenced taxi in New York City, working as a cashier in a branch of the pharmacy chain Walgreens and making pizzas.

The report also said this raises the question of whether the real estate purchases were made with money sent from Bangladesh, which would involve Golap breaking the law.