A Dhaka court on Tuesday recorded the third day of testimony in three corruption cases against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, and daughter Saima Wazed Putul over alleged irregularities in Rajuk plot allocation.
Six more witnesses testified at Dhaka Special Judge’s Court-5, presided over by Judge Md Abdullah Al Mamun. As the accused remain absconding, the witnesses were not cross-examined. The court set September 17 for the next hearing.
Tuesday’s witnesses were Sonali Bank’s Ganabhaban branch senior principal officer Gautam Kumar Sikdar, principal officer Md Shariful Islam, tax circle senior assistant Md Lutfar Rahman, computer operator Md Rezaul Haque, notice server Md Abu Taher, and office assistant Delwar Hossain.
On July 31, the court indicted the accused and ordered the trial to begin, issuing arrest warrants after they failed to appear.
The three cases involve multiple members of the Sheikh family alongside former ministers and Rajuk officials. In one case, the accused include Sheikh Rehana, Tulip Rizwana Siddiq, Sheikh Hasina, and 14 others; in another, Azmira Siddiq Rupanthi, Radwan Mujib Siddiq Bobby, Sheikh Hasina, and 15 others; and in the third, Radwan Mujib Siddiq Bobby, Sheikh Hasina, and 16 others.
Other accused include Housing and Public Works Secretary Shahid Ullah Khandaker, Additional Secretary Kazi Wazi Uddin, Administrative Officer Saiful Islam Sarkar, Senior Assistant Secretary Purabi Goldar, former Rajuk chairman Anisur Rahman Miah, several former Rajuk members, former state minister Sharif Ahmed, and Sheikh Hasina’s personal secretary Salauddin, among others.
The Anti-Corruption Commission filed six separate cases in January over corruption in plot allocation, naming Sheikh Hasina, her children, her sister Sheikh Rehana, and Rehana’s children, among others. Charge sheets have since been submitted, and arrest warrants remain in effect for the absconding accused.
