The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Dhaka

The Anti-Corruption Commission has launched an investigation into alleged irregularities in plot allotment to some 100 individuals, including senior bureaucrats, judges, military and police officials.

ACC director general (admin) Col Hanif Iqbal told its regular briefing yesterday that a special team formed to look into corruption in Land Ministry detected that plots have been allocated to these officials illegally.

The officials include former and serving secretaries, additional secretaries, joint secretaries, deputy secretaries, wife of a divisional commissioner, district and sessions judge, joint district judge, military officers, OCs, municipal administrator, officials of Delta Life Insurance, officials of Islamic Foundation, officials of Cooperative department, Water Development Board director, upazila nirbahi officer, employees of Narayanganj district administration and drivers of the government transport pool.

According to the ACC team, some 18.66 acres of land were acquired in Narayanganj district in 2000-2001 for a housing project of a multipurpose cooperative society for the officials and employees of the Land Ministry.

But the government suffered a loss of Tk 81.3 lakh in revenue due to irregularities in acquiring the land. The involvement of the then deputy commissioner of Narayanganj, additional deputy commissioner (revenue), land acquisition officer, additional land acquisition officer and other officials and employees was found in the irregularities.

Although they were not members of the society, they got plots in the housing project in reward for their immoral deeds. The 100 officials were illegally allocated plots in the project even though they were not members of the society in favour of which the land was acquired, according to the ACC team.

It appears that there is no legal basis of giving permission for acquisition of land in favour of a particular society. The ACC has initiated the process of seeking explanation from the Land Ministry about the plot allotment to non-member 100 individuals.