The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

A court in Dhaka will give decision on issuing warrant of arrest against Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) Mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka on July 7 in a case filed for amassing wealth worth Tk 9.76 crore illegally and giving false information to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Md Azizul Huq fixed the date yesterday afternoon after the charge-sheet submitted by ACC against Khoka shifted to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) court.

On Tuesday, the ACC submitted charge-sheet against the Dhaka Mayor for amassing

huge wealth worth Tk 9.76 crore illegally and giving false information about his wealth to the anti-graft watchdog.

It may be mentioned that Khoka admitted to United Hospital at Gulshan in the city yesterday after he felt sickness.

The ACC detected Khoka's huge wealth including movable and immovable property worth Tk 19.41 crore during the investigation.

Khoka owns immovable assets including four buildings, six apartments, eight residential plots, 2848 decimal land and one shop at Bashundhara Shopping Complex.

The Dhaka Mayor and his family members also own movable property including shares worth Tk 25 lakh, interest of shares worth Tk 5.5 crore, FDR worth about Tk 25 lakh, defence savings bonds worth about Tk 15 lakh, 27 bank accounts, two motor vehicles, two firearms and Tk 1.57 lakh business capital.

Khoka has five buildings situated at RK Mission Road, Gulshan, Gopibagh and Munshiganj district.

His wife has also 11 bank accounts, two buildings, eight residential plots in Dhaka, gold ornaments worth Tk 2.5 lakh and 1674 decimal land in Dhaka and Gazipur.

ACC Assistant Director Shamsul Alam, also the investigation officer of the case, submitted the charge sheet against Khoka to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court showing 43 people as prosecution witnesses.

In the charge sheet, the IO showed Sadeque Hossain Khoka as absconding and prayed for issuance of arrest warrants against him and sought an order to attach his all movable and immovable properties.

The ACC could not submit any probe report in another case as the High Court (HC) earlier stayed the proceedings of the case against Khoka's wife Ishmat Ara.

The Investigation Officer will take necessary steps against Ishmat Ara following an HC order.

Khoka remains the only mayor out of the six mayors of six city corporations in the country, who has not been detained.

Meanwhile, the detained mayors cannot contest the upcoming August 4 city corporation polls due to their conviction and detention on corruption charges, except for the Chittagong city corporation mayor whose tenure is yet to expire.

The IO prayed for discharging Khoka's son Ishrak Hossain and daughter Sarika Sadeque, as the charges brought against them were not proved.

The charge sheet has been made under sections 26 (2) and 27 (1) of the ACC Act, 2004, and section 15 of the Emergency Power Rules, 2007.

In the charge sheet, the IO mentioned that Khoka submitted his wealth statement showing wealth worth Tk 9.97 crore on December 6 last year, but the ACC found illegal wealth worth Tk 9.76 crore in his ownership, which is beyond his known sources of income.

The ACC also found wealth worth Tk 9,65,03,609 that was concealed in his wealth information submitted earlier to the commission.

On April 2 this year, ACC filed the case against Khoka, his wife Ishmat Ara, son Ishrak and daughter Sarika for accumulating wealth worth over Tk 17.57 crore, which does not match his actual income and concealing information about his wealth.

The complainant accused Khoka, also president of BNP's city unit, of concealing wealth worth about Tk 10 crore in the wealth statement he submitted to ACC.

Khoka's wife, son and daughter were accused of assisting him for committing the offences.