ACC can investigate allegations against Grameen Telecom transactions

The High Court (HC) has observed that the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) can do the needful to investigate authenticity of the allegations of diversion of funds by the Grameen Telecom, an organisation owned by Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, to other companies.
It also finds it right to direct the anti-graft body to do the needful to find out authenticity of the allegation of sending money to the accounts of the Grameen Telecom Sramik Karmachari Union and its lawyers - in violation of relevant provisions of the labour act.
The HC bench of Justice Muhammad Khurshid Alam Sarkar passed the observation on Thursday after disposing of a company matter filed by Karmachari Union against Grameen Telecom over their dues.
In the hearing, Additional Attorney General Mehedi Hasan Chowdhury, representing the state, said, "Since the application was filed on two allegations - first, the company has not paid the statutory payment of the workers, and second, the board of directors (of Grameen Telecom) has diverted a huge amount of money from Grameen Telecom to its other sister concerns in violation of the laws, an investigation is required to be carried out either by the law enforcing agency concerned or by the ACC."
Grameen Telecom has transferred a total of Tk 30.09 billion to its other sister concerns, said the state law officer. In reply, Grameen Telecom lawyer Mustafizur Rahman Khan said, "The ACC has already asked Grameen Telecom to furnish relevant documents with regard to its transactions from the date of its inception till date."
Meanwhile, the court on August 2 last asked the Grameen Telecom Sramik Karmachari Union's lawyer Md Yousuf Ali to submit details of taking a huge amount of fees from his clients.

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