The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has summoned former BASIC Bank Chairman Sheikh Abdul Hye Bachchu for questioning over a massive loan fraud.
Bachchu and a few others have been instructed to appear at the ACC on December 4, said ACC Deputy Commissioner (Media) Pranab Kumer Bhattacharya.
The ACC opened an investigation into the state-run BASICBank after allegations that Tk 35 billion in loans had been illegally distributed from the Gulshan, Dilkusha and Shantinagar branches between 2009 and 2011.
BASIC Bank is alleged to have given loans without collateral and using false documents and fictitious names and organisations in violation of rules and regulations, reports bdnews24.
After nearly four years of investigation, the ACC filed 56 cases at three police stations in Dhaka, accusing 156 individuals. Twenty-six are bank officials. The rest are connected to lending institutions and bank oversight organisations.
But the absence of Bachchu and other prominent members of the board of directors on the list of suspects prompted controversy.
The ACC claimed they had not found any evidence of Bachchu’s involvement.
The parliamentary standing committee on the finance ministry was unhappy with the ACC findings and the central bank opened a separate investigation into the matter.
In February 2016, Finance Minister AMA Muhith claimed the investigation into BASIC Bank had found evidence of loan fraud, appointment fraud and promotion manipulation relating to Bachchu.
In August, the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division expressed its anger that Bachchu and the board of directors had not been named suspects in loan frauds and money laundering.
The court warned the ACC not to ‘pick and choose’.
Facing criticism, an ACC director told the media that Bachchu would be called in for questioning, even though he was not on the list of suspects.
Bachchu, a former Jatiya Party MP, was appointed the chairman of the bank in 2009. His appointment was renewed in 2012. He resigned in 2014 amid pressure following the emerging fraud allegations.
Finance Minister Muhith said Bachchu would not be let off the hook.
