The Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) yesterday filed another case against former premier Khaleda Zia, her elder son Tarique Rahman and five others for embezzling over Tk 2.10 crore by forming an eyewash establishment named Zia Orphanage Trust.
According to the case, then prime minister Khaleda Zia and the other accused through unlawful practices embezzled over Tk 2.10 crore by establishing an organisation named Zia Orphanage Trust that exists only on paper.
The five other accused in the case are former BNP lawmaker Kazi Salimul Haque, Syed Ahmed alias Sayeed Ahmed, Gias Uddin Ahmed, Sharfuddin Ahmed and Mominur Rahman, a son of Khaleda's sister.
Harunur Rashid, a deputy assistant director of the ACC, filed the case with Ramna Police Station under sections 409/109 of the Penal Code, section 5(2) of the Corruption Prevention Act of 1947 and section 15 of the Emergency Power Rules 2007.
The complainant alleged that on June 9 in 1991, a grant in the amount of $1,255,000, equivalent to about Tk 4.45 crore at the time, was transferred from United Saudi Commercial Bank to Prime Minister's Orphanage Fund -- a fund that was created by then premier Khaleda shortly before the transfer of the grant as part of the embezzlement scheme. Only Khaleda administered the fund.
On September 5, 1993, Khaleda, still the prime minister, issued a Tk 2.33-crore cheque from the Prime Minister's Orphanage Fund to the so-called Zia Orphanage Trust on the pretext of building an orphanage in Bogra.
On November 15 the same year, the cheque was deposited into Zia Orphanage Trust account maintained with Sonali Bank's New North Circle Branch at Gulshan in the capital.
Later, Tk 4 lakh was withdrawn from the trust account and Tk 2.77 lakh of it was spent to purchase 2.79 acres of land at Gabtoli in Bogra under the name of Zia Orphanage Trust.
In the following 13 years, between 1993 and April 2006, there was no activity of the trust and the amount saved in the account of the trust grew to Tk 3.37 crore with accrued interest.
In April, June and July of 2006, Khaleda's son Tarique Rahman, also the chairman of the Zia Orphanage Trust, transferred Tk 3.3 crore from the trust account in six cheques to an FDR (fixed deposit receipt) account opened by his relative Mominur Rahman with Gulshan branch of Prime Bank.
By February 7, 2007, most of the Tk 3.3 crore was again distributed into new FDR accounts opened with Prime Bank's New Eskaton branch at Ramna under the names of Kazi Salimul Haque, Syed Ahmed alias Sayeed Ahmed, Gias Uddin Ahmed and Sharfuddin Ahmed.
Finally, on February 15, 2007, Tk 2.10 crore was embezzled by withdrawing it through pay orders from two of the FDR accounts, the case statement said.
The ACC earlier interrogated Khaleda, now detained in a special jail, and her two detained sons -- Tarique Rahman and Arafat Rahman Coco, a member of the Zia Orphanage Trust, regarding the alleged fund embezzlement.
Khaleda is also accused in Gatco, Niko and Barapukura graft cases while Tarique is accused in 15 other cases.