Court orders seizure of Khalid Mahmud’s Uttara Plot, 23 acres of land

A Dhaka court on Tuesday ordered the seizure of assets belonging to former State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, including a five-katha plot in Uttara and 23.21 acres of land in Dinajpur, as part of an Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) investigation.

The order was issued on Tuesday by Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Sabbir Fayez following an ACC petition, court officials said.

The court also ordered the freezing of six bank accounts holding Tk 31.4 million, a fixed deposit of Tk 300,000, a savings certificate worth Tk 278,500 and a vehicle valued at Tk 7.05 million.

According to the ACC, the seized land in Dinajpur includes 18.0606 acres valued at Tk 24.45 million, while 5.1494 acres acquired through power of attorney were not assigned a stated value. The Uttara plot has been valued at Tk 5.6 million.

In its application, the ACC said there was a risk that Chowdhury might transfer or dispose of his movable and immovable assets and flee the country, which could hamper the investigation. The seizure and freezing of assets were therefore necessary to protect the integrity of the probe.

The case was filed on April 8, last year, by ACC Assistant Director Minhaj Bin Islam, alleging that Chowdhury acquired Tk 57.38 million in assets inconsistent with his known sources of income. The complaint also cites suspicious transactions worth Tk 136.82 million through 11 bank accounts and five card accounts.

Charges have been brought under relevant provisions of the ACC Act 2004, the Prevention of Corruption Act 1947 and the Money Laundering Prevention Act 2012. A travel ban on Chowdhury was imposed earlier on June 26 last year.