Basic Bank scam: HC rebukes ACC

The High Court today rebuked the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) for dillydallying and weakness of its investigation into the cases filed for Basic Bank loan scam.

The commission has lack of transparency, competence and neutrality in dealing with the cases concerning the loan scam of Basic Bank, said the court said, adding that the commission is applying “pick and choose” policy, as it is arresting someone and releasing others in connection with the corruption cases.

The bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Shahidul Karim came up with the remarks while hearing three petitions filed by M Selim, the then general manager of Internal Credit Division of BASIC Bank, seeking bail in three cases filed for misappropriating money and committing irregularities in allocating loan of the bank.

ACC lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan told the court that that a total of 48 cases have been filed in connection with the loan scam of BASIC Bank and charge sheets of five cases are awaiting approval from the commission.

The commission will finish the investigation into the cases soon, he said.

The bench, however, granted bail to Md Selim in three cases.

Advocate Khurshid told The Daily Star that Selim cannot get released from jail following the HC verdict as he is arrested in other cases.

According to a Bangladesh Bank enquiry, about Tk 4,500 crore was siphoned out of BASIC Bank between 2009 and 2013 when Abdul Hye Bacchu chaired the board of the bank.

On July 14, 2014, Bangladesh Bank sent a report on the BASIC Bank scam to the ACC, detailing how people embezzled money from the bank through shell companies and dubious accounts.

After primary investigation, ACC filed around two dozen cases in September 2015 accusing over 20 bank officials and two dozen borrowing firms.