 "Bangladesh urges UK to probe overseas wealth of Sheikh Hasina allies")
Bangladesh’s interim government has reached out to the UK seeking help investigating the overseas wealth linked to former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s allies as the administration under Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus intensifies its crackdown on members of her party, which has always been alleged of corruption.
What does the govt hope to find?
Bangladesh’s new Central Bank Governor Ahsan Mansur told Financial Times that the new government is trying to ascertain whether Hasina and her ministers redirect £13 billion (Tk2tn) overseas from the bank.
Not just the UK, but Dhaka has also urged other countries like US, Singapore and UAE, to help in its probe.
“The UK government has been very helpful. The High Commissioner was in my office and they offered lots of technical support,” Mansur said.
Mansur specifically mentioned that Bangladeshi authorities were keen to trace the origins of the funds used to acquire a UK property portfolio valued at £150 million, which is owned by a former land minister from Sheikh Hasina’s administration.
“A heist of this order could not have taken place without the knowledge of the prime minister,” the central bank governor added.
‘Will recover money stolen from B’desh’
Meanwhile, Yunus has also reportedly met UK’s High Commission in Bangladesh to request Britain’s help in tracing the money.
His press secretary Shafiqul Alam said, “Bangladeshi authorities are going to recover the money which has been stolen from Bangladesh and siphoned off abroad.”
Earlier this year, Transparency International UK noted that the British property portfolio held by companies connected to former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury is an example of “unexplained wealth” that warrants investigation by authorities.
As per a review by Financial Times, the records of HM Land Registry and UK Companies House show that Chowdhury “acquired at least 280 properties for more than £150mn.”
However, Chowdhury’s lawyer has said that he has “nothing to hide” and rejected claims that he has stolen money from Bangladesh.
source : firstpost