Dhaka: The government has established a committee to investigate the alleged corruption in the construction of model mosques. Chief Adviser's Press Secretary, Shafiqul Alam, announced this development during a media briefing at the Foreign Service Academy.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Alam detailed that the Ministry of Religious Affairs has been tasked with spearheading this investigation into the irregularities observed in the mosque construction projects. Alam highlighted that approximately Taka 15 to 17 crore was spent on the construction of each model mosque, a figure he suggests could have been significantly lower, between Taka 7 to 8 crore, had there been no corruption during the previous Awami League regime.
The issue of funding also came to light, with Alam noting that although it was initially claimed that the mosques were built with funds from Saudi Arabia, the reality was that public money was used for the construction. He also pointed out a specific instance of malpractice, where a model mosque was constructed near a resort owned by a minister from the former government, in direct violation of regulations.
Responding to inquiries, Alam assured that the probe body would uncover the details of the corruption involved in the mosque construction. The briefing was also attended by Chief Adviser's Deputy Press Secretaries Apurba Jahangir and Abul Kalam Azad Majumder, along with Senior Assistant Press Secretary Foyez Ahammad.