Ex-FCCI president, wife sued for illegal wealth

The Anti-Corruption Commission today sued Siddiqur Rahman, former president of the Faridpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI), and his wife, Musreen Akhtar.

ACC's Deputy Director, Rezaul Karim, filed two separate cases in the Faridpur ACC office, accusing the couple of accumulating approximately Tk 13.90 crore illegally beyond their known sources of income, reports our Faridpur correspondent.

According to the case statements, Siddiqur, 45, illegally acquired Tk 11.54 crore between the tax years 1996-97 and 2021-22, while Musreen, 45, is accused of having Tk 2.35 crore derived from her husband's illicit wealth between the tax years 2012-13 and 2021-22.

Siddiqur, a prominent contractor, is also implicated in a Tk 2,000 crore money laundering case alongside 46 others.

They were accused of manipulating tenders and receiving kickbacks from government contracts in Faridpur.

Responding to the ACC case, Siddiqur said, "There have been 19 cases against me in the past. A lack of evidence and witnesses led to my acquittal. Due to my failure to meet the illicit demand made by the ACC, these cases have been filed against me and my wife. I am not concerned about the ACC's case. My tax file accounts for all my assets."

Responding to Siddiqur's claim, Rezaul Karim, deputy director of ACC Faridpur, said, "We filed the case against Siddiqur and his wife Musreen after finding assets they acquired beyond their known sources of income during our preliminary investigation."

Rezaul said Siddiqur aimed to disprove the case's basis to save himself from legal repercussions.