Court orders confiscation of more property of Benazir
FE REPORT | Monday, 27 May 2024
Following corruption allegations, a Dhaka court has ordered authorities to seize 119 deeds linked to property owned by former inspector general of police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed, his wife and their children.
The court also ordered the confiscation of four apartments owned by the family in Dhaka's upscale Gulshan area, savings certificates worth Tk 3.0 million, three beneficiary owner's (BO) accounts, 100 per cent shares in four companies and their shares in 15 additional companies.
Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Mohammad As-Shams Jaglul Hossain issued the order on Sunday after hearing a petition filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) seeking the confiscation of the properties.
Public Prosecutor Mahmud Hossain Jahangir, who represented the ACC in the court, confirmed the court order.
This latest order comes after the same court on Thursday directed the confiscation of 83 properties and the freezing of 33 financial accounts, including 27 bank accounts, belonging to the former IGP and his family members.
The public prosecutor said the ACC subsequently discovered further wealth owned by Benazir and his family. They then filed a petition to confiscate these additional assets, which the court approved.
ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan told The Financial Express that the commission had already begun the process of complying with the court order issued last week regarding confiscation and freezing of Benazir's assets.
Following media reports suggesting huge corruption by the IGP, the ACC initiated an inquiry into the allegations in April this year. A three-member committee was formed by the ACC to investigate the claims.
Benazir Ahmed was the IGP from 15 April 2020 to 30 September 2022. Previously, he served as the commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and director general of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB).
Benazir Ahmed is one of the top seven former and current RAB officials who were sanctioned by the US in December 2021 on charges of human rights violations. He was then the IG of Bangladesh Police.