Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Executive Committee member and Dhaka North City Corporation mayoral candidate Tabith Awal, said the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) should conduct a fair investigation of the allegations against him – without any form of politically motivated harassment.
Tabith made the remark while addressing reporters after ACC interrogated him at the commission’s Segunbagicha headquarters in Dhaka on Tuesday.
ACC Public Relations Officer Pranab Kumar Bhattacharya said Tabith was questioned between 10am and 2pm for “suspicious transactions” at his bank accounts.
Tabith Awal, son of businessman and former president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Abdul Awal Mintoo, also said: “If an accurate investigation is carried out [by ACC] without any political consideration, the truth will be revealed.”
“I think, considering the current political situation, the government tries to persecute other political parties. I am not the only one who has been subjected to such persecution; it also includes all the other leaders of the party, including the former prime minister, Begum Khaleda Zia,” Tabith said.
When asked about whether the interrogation by ACC would have any impact on his Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) election candidacy, he said the order of the election has been postponed and it will be decided after the ACC’s investigation.
Also Read - ACC interrogates Tabith Awal over money laundering
“I am still a candidate as per our law. I expect to participate in the election,” he added.
ACC’s Deputy Director, Akhter Hamid Bhuiyan, interrogated Tabith. ACC sent the summons to Tabith on April 24. We suspect him of amassing wealth from undisclosed sources and funneling the money out of the country,” Pranab also said.
Tabith, vice president of the Bangladesh Football Federation, ran for the position of mayor in the last Dhaka North City Corporation elections.
However, the commission launched the investigation into an allegation against Tabith following suspicious deposits by some of BNP’S top leaders, into his bank account over a period of 30 days, amounting to around Tk125 crore.
The leaders include National Standing Committee members, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Mirza Abbas, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, and Nazrul Islam Khan, Vice Chairmen Abdul Awal Mintoo and M Morshed Khan, and Joint Secretary General, Habibun Nabi Khan Sohel.
Additionally, Morshed Khan’s son, Faisal Morshed Khan, and Dhaka Bank Managing Director, Syed Mahbubur Rahman, are also under ACC monitoring, according to an order issued by ACC Deputy Director Hrithik Saha.
Meanwhile, BNP leaders earlier said the Awami League government is using the ACC to persecute its rivals instead of preventing corruption.
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