Trash proposal to allow laundered money back: TIB

Slamming the facility of bringing laundered money back in the next fiscal year, the Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) on Friday urged the government not to implement the scheme.

In his FY '23 budget speech, the finance minister has proposed addition of a new provision to the Income Tax Ordinance, 1984 to allow bringing back the laundered money mainly to energise the private sector.

The TIB termed the proposed provision an immoral, discriminatory and conflicting one to the existing laws.

In a statement, TIB executive director Dr Iftekharuzza-man said, "Whatever explanation the finance minister gives in favour of the scheme, it is nothing but an initiative to provide unethical safeguard to the money launderers."

The proposal is directly conflicting with the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012 which has provisions to confiscate laundered money, double fine to the launderers, and slap maximum 12 years of imprisonment on them, he said.