Dhaka:A court in Dhaka has ordered the seizure of income tax documents belonging to the Centre for Research and Information (CRI) as part of an ongoing investigation into a case filed by the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC). The case involves eight individuals, including Sajeeb Wazed Joy and Saima Wazed Putul, children of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Judge Shahjahan Kabir of the Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Court issued the order following a petition by the ACC. The commission filed the case over allegations related to the receipt of grants by CRI from various companies, income tax benefits provision, and fund misappropriation.
The ACC's petition details that the accused include CRI Trustee Radwan Mujib Siddiq, former State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid Bipu, CRI's Executive Director Shabbir Bin Shams, former National Board of Revenue Chairman Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, former Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, and Tax Appellate Tribunal member Rowshan Ara Akhter. The petition claims that CRI received 45,35,95,000 taka from 23 companies as CSR funds, with a reported total income of 100,31,40,486 taka between the 2013-2014 and 2023-2024 tax years. It is alleged that 15,68,59,521 taka has been misappropriated.
The ACC further claims that over 2.4785 billion taka was deposited into 25 bank accounts associated with CRI, with withdrawals exceeding 1.9121 billion taka. The transactions across these accounts total more than 4.39 billion taka, with an alleged financial loss to the government due to unpaid income tax amounting to 36,52,742 taka.
The petition additionally alleges abuse of power in granting income tax benefits to CRI, with investigations ongoing into illicit tax benefits and fund misappropriation through company donations. The case is filed under several legal provisions, including sections of the Penal Code, the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, and the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012.
For the investigation, ACC Assistant Director AKM Murtuza Ali Sagar, also the Investigating Officer, submitted an application to seize all relevant records, including income tax files maintained at Circle-116, Tax Zone-6, Dhaka, covering tax years up to 2025-2026. The court reviewed the application and ordered the seizure of the documents.