Legal hitch hampers ACC investigations

Although the newly passed Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) (Amendment) Act, 2013 has given more power to the ACC to conduct probes into graft allegations, its investigation and inquiry officers are facing hassles in collecting documents due to complications in interpretation of the law.
"When we seek documents from banks, NBR (National Board of Revenue) or other financial institutions, the authorities don't provide that showing causes that the documents the commission sought are not public documents, but the classified ones," an ACC inquiry officer and deputy director told UNB seeking anonymity.
The Anti-corruption Commission (Amendment) Act, 2013 has incorporated a provision in Section-5 saying that the provisions of this law will get supremacy over whatever mentioned in other acts.
About the special powers of the Commission in respect to inquiry or investigation, the section 19 (1) (d) of the Anti-corruption Commission Act 2004, the Commission shall call for public records or its certified copies from any court office.
The provision of 19 (2) stated that the Commission may require any person to 'furnish information' in matters relating to any inquiry or investigation and any person so directed is obliged to furnish information available to him.
The ACC officials said they are facing trouble in collecting statements of bank accounts of graft suspects to conduct probes since the bank officials claim that these information are confidential and classified, and as per the Bankers' Book Evidence Act-1891 they have no jurisdiction to provide these documents to the Commission.
"A few days ago, I have sent notices to some private banks seeking the bank documents of a political leader, who currently faces probe by the ACC. I'm yet to collect the documents from the banks as the bankers claimed the documents I sought are classified," another inquiry officer said.
He said the ACC inquiry officers have to collect documents from banks using their personal relations with bank officials, not as per the law. "It should be cleared which 'information to be furnished' and which is 'classified document'."
According to the clause 5 of the Bankers' Book Evidence Act-1891, "No officer of a bank shall in any legal proceeding to which the bank is not a party be compellable to produce any banker's book the contents of which can be proved under this Act, or to appear as a witness to prove the matters, transactions and accounts therein recorded, unless by order of the Court or a Judge made for special cause."
ACC Chairman M Badiuzzaman told UNB that some authorities had earlier said that they were not bound to provide information to the ACC under the Anti Corruption Commission Act 2004, but as per the amended law they are now bound to provide information to the Commission.
Asked about the 'furnishable information' mentioned in the provision of 19 (2), he said the ACC officials have not yet complained about any difficulty in collecting documents during their probes.
"If they face problem in collecting documents, we must examine the provision of the ACC act," the ACC chairman said.