Chattogram: A Chattogram court today framed charges against former Cox's Bazar Deputy Commissioner (DC) Ruhul Amin, former District and Sessions Judge Md. Sadiqul Islam Talukder, and five others in a case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the ACC lodged the case on charges of document forgery related to land acquisition for the Matarbari coal-fired power plant in Cox's Bazar. Chattogram Divisional Special Judge Mizanur Rahman issued the order after a hearing on Tuesday.
The other accused include Zafar Ahmed, a stenographer at Cox's Bazar District and Sessions Judge's Court, lawyer Mostaq Ahmed Chowdhury, and Swapan Kanti Pal, Nazir of the Deputy Commissioner's Office. All five accused were present in court during the hearing.
Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) prosecutor Kazi Sanowar Ahmed Lavlu stated that following the hearing, the court ordered the framing of charges against each of the accused. However, the court granted them interim bail until the next scheduled date of August 3, when testimony will be taken.
Ruhul Amin served as the DC of Cox's Bazar from September 2012 to February 2015, during which 1,414 acres of land were acquired in Moheshkhali upazila for the power plant, as noted by court sources. In this process, Tk 19.82 crore was allegedly misappropriated from the land acquisition fund.
The case was initially filed by local businessman AKM Kaisarul Islam Chowdhury against Ruhul Amin, his deputy Jafor Alam, and others in 2014. The ACC submitted the charge sheet in April 2017, prompting the court to take cognizance and task the ACC with further investigation.
However, the then District and Sessions Judge Sadiqul Islam Talukder excluded the name of Ruhul Amin from the case documents sent to the ACC head office. Upon realizing this omission, plaintiff Kaisarul Islam Chowdhury filed a fraud case against seven people, including Deputy Commissioner Ruhul Amin and District Judge Sadiqul Islam Talukder, in the same court.
Assistant Director of the ACC's Cox's Bazar Integrated District Office, Md. Riaz Uddin, conducted an investigation and filed a charge sheet against five individuals on January 1, 2024. The investigation revealed the involvement of the former DC and district judge, along with the plaintiff's lawyer, Nazir, and stenographer.