The High Court has raised a question whether this country is a place of plundering, as a group of people, especially who have the dual citizenship, are smuggling huge sum of money abroad.
It also observed that the individuals with the dual citizenship have more scope to launder money abroad easily. The court also said the individuals who hold dual citizenship have less responsibility towards the country as their hearts are divided.
The HC bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Khizir Hayat raised the question and passed the observation while holding hearing on a news report published in a Bangla daily recently under the headline "Bideshey Sampad Kenar Utsab (festival of purchasing properties abroad)".
Considering the newspaper report the High Court on February 9 asked whether dual citizens can purchase properties abroad with the money earned in Bangladesh according to the existing laws of the land and the Constitution.
It also questioned the legality of holding different Constitutional posts and government employments by the dual citizens.
During the hearing on Monday the HC bench wanted to know from lawyer Khursid Alam Khan, a counsel for the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), whether the individuals who have dual citizenship can get a loan from the banks in our country.
ACC lawyer then replied that there is no bar for a dual citizen in getting a bank loan. However, after getting a loan most of the dual citizens are laundering the money abroad. Besides, money is being laundered in many other ways, he added.
Then the court said, “Is this country a place for plundering?” Khurshid Alam Khan said, “Exactly this is happening. They are receiving the loan and transferring the money.”
The court then said, “If the money is laundered abroad once, it is difficult to bring back it. However, if you can trace the location of the money then you can impose a tax on that money. Many countries earn a huge remittance by this process. But we don't have such mechanism.”
It further said, “In receiving a loan from bank or any other financial institutions, an only Bangladeshi citizen and a dual citizen face the same conditions. However, there should have a proper guideline to grant loans for the dual citizens as they have the more scope to launder money abroad easily.”
In the hearing, lawyer Manzill Murshid said, “Big loan scams started in the country especially after the starting of political appointment in the board of directors of the banks. Meanwhile, some developed countries started granting citizenship by investment category a few years ago. Since then many people of Bangladesh started taking citizenship in this process. They are basically buying properties abroad with money from the country.”
So the court can issue a rule upon the respondents asking them as to why they should not be directed to formulate a guideline in granting loan to a dual citizen, prayed the lawyer to the HC bench.
In this stage the ACC lawyer requested the court to issue a rule regarding the issue after hearing the Bangladesh Bank lawyer as the central bank is a concerned party of the money smuggling.
Then the court fixed next Sunday (February 19) for further hearing on the issue. It said that it will hear Bangladesh Bank lawyer as well as the Attorney General regarding the matter on the next hearing date.
Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kazal, former secretary of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), and Deputy Attorney General AKM Amin Uddin Manik also took part in the court hearing.
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