Threats, trickery were Harris’ tools for ill-gotten gains

Harris Chowdhury

Lust for wealth coupled with ability to make the most of his position as the political secretary to former prime minister Khaleda Zia earned Harris Chowdhury fancy flats and cars and stashes of notes.
Using threats, winning businesses favourable concessions and grabbing government property, he became set up for life during the BNP-led alliance rule.
Findings of investigations by the Task Force and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) go on and on about shady deals that made Harris a filthy rich.
They reveal how he intimidated former Rajuk chairman and public works secretary Iqbal Uddin Chowdhury into giving him a flat.
Ziaul Islam, Harris' APS in his heyday, threatened Iqbal several times that if he did not concede his boss's demand, he would lose his job.
Left with few choices, Iqbal gave in. With help from railway contractor Golam M Alamgir, he arranged a flat for Harris in Dhanmondi area in 2003.
Measuring 2,550 square feet, the flat was registered in the name of Harris' son Nayem Shafi Chowdhury. On papers, it was claimed to have been purchased at Tk 12 lakh though Nayem was shown as a student with no specific source of income.
Investigations unearthed that Alamgir had bought the flat from a developer for Tk 47 lakh and spent Tk 3 lakh more for its decoration and furnishings. He passed on its ownership to Iqbal on condition that the latter would pay him in instalments. And this is how a government official of his rank managed to escape Harris' wrath.
Ziaul Islam however told The Daily Star that he didn't need to threat anyone as Harris himself took care of everything.
Only a year before, Harris bought a flat in Gulshan from Concord Real Estate Ltd. He spent Tk 50 lakh for the 3,900 square feet flat while its market price was at least Tk 1.37 crore.
The flat was purchased in the name of his wife Josne Ara Chowdhury. Besides buying the flat at a throwaway price, Harris had some other benefits from Concord. In exchange, he had to manoeuvre a way out for the realtor from a scam case.
Harris received a five-katha plot in Bashundhara residential area from Bashundhara Group. He had the land registered in the name of his daughter Samira Tanjin. He showed the 'purchase' cost to be Tk 3.93 lakh while the investigators conclude that market price of the land was at least Tk 50 lakh.
In fact, it didn't cost him a penny.
That's not all. He went on to have a two-storey building constructed on the plot by Concord Condominium for a cost of Tk 10 lakh. Probes however gathered that the construction took no less than Tk 43 lakh.
Whatever he had paid to Concord did not have any known source of income.
In 2005, Harris earned yet another flat, valued at Tk 1.50 crore, from managing director of Boishakhi Television AKM Shahidullah. The investigators suspect it had something to do with the private TV channel obtaining a licence to operate.
These are a few examples of how Harris capitalised on his ties to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and Hawa Bhaban, the alternative powerhouse during the BNP-Jamaat rule.
His greed for wealth did not spare government property, observed the sleuths.
For example, they described how he grabbed the residence he was allotted as a political secretary to the PM. First, he had the house declared abandoned by Rajuk and the housing and public works ministry. He had it put up for auction in 2003 and bought it in the name of his friend Fakir Mahbub Anam.
According to Fakir Mahbub, Harris paid over Tk 5.36 crore for the house through him. In 2004, he had it registered in the name of his brother Amran Hossain Chowdhury.
Later, he turned the one-storey building into a two-storey palatial house with a broad expanse of lawn. Inquiries found that Bengal Group Chairman Abul Khair Litu had to fork out Tk 2 crore of over Tk 7 crore spent on renovation of the house.
Litu obliged Harris with many other favours to make sure the government did not cancel his lease on a piece of khas land next to Zia International Airport.
Harris had a shop at Bangabandhu National Stadium market allotted in favour of his brother Amran Hossain. He deposited over Tk 12 lakh with the National Sports Council for possession of the shop.
Though the allotment was supposed to be made through a lottery, it did not happen in his case.
Harris used to wield enormous clout over Muktijoddha Kalyan Trust and used the organisation to make huge sums. Shah Alam Chowdhury, secretary general of the trust, would extort money on his behalf, and deposit an amount ranging between Tk 25 lakh to 30 lakh in his APS Ziaul Islam's account every month.
Harris received a fancy SUV worth Tk 1 crore from Orion Group Chairman Obaidul Karim to win him the work of Gulistan-Jatrabari flyover. A case filed in this connection has been stayed by the High Court following a writ petition.
The mighty political secretary to the then premier would ride a four-wheel drive belonging to the local government and rural development ministry. He also had two luxury cars for the use of his family.
In addition, he had a car allotted from National Tea Company for his friend Amin Badal. While his pal used the car for five years, he pocketed the money granted as fuel and maintenance expenditure.
This apart, Harris pulled strings to get the Privatisation Commission let him buy Lira Industrial Enterprise Ltd, a profit-making plastic factory at Tongi. In different names, he had Tk 2 crore shares in the factory. His brother Amran would look after the business on his behalf.
Those involved in the probes said such tales abound Harris' hold on power.
In the names of his wife, offspring, siblings, friends and associates, he owns shares in National Tea Company, Ocean Bangladesh Corporation, ICB, Eastern Cables, and One Entertainment Ltd.
Investigations also yielded that he along with controversial businessman Giasuddin Al Mamun and former lawmaker MA Selim alias Silver Selim had made over Tk 26.15 crore from underhand dealings with different individuals and businesses including Bashundhara Group and Orion Group.
They invested the money in One Entertainment Ltd and split it into seven partnerships. Harris' was in the name of Amran.
Harris has 25 accounts with different banks. Most of those are in the names of his wife, brother, sister-in-law, sister and her son, and his former PO Atikul Islam Chowdhury. Of the accounts, the one with the PMO branch of Sonali Bank would be used for collecting salary and benefits from the government while the rest for stashing sums gained through unknown means.
The sleuths have detected more than 50 unusual transactions carried out through and between the accounts.