ACC Deputy Director Abu Mohammad Arif Siddique lodged the cases with Kotwali Police Station, reports our staff correspondent in Chittagong.

Other accused in the cases are former CCC secretary AFM Solaiman Chowdhury, noted drama personality Abdullah Al Mamun, General Secretary of Chittagong Bar Association Iftekhar Saimul Chowdhury, former leader of Shilpi Samonnoy Parishad Golam Mostafa Kanchan, Professor of the Sociology Department at Chittagong University Iftekhar Uddin Chowdhury, former CCC chief executive officer Abdul Haque and former chairman of Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) Mahmudul Islam.

Sources said the city mayor, Iftekhar, Golam Mostafa and Abdullah Al Mamun have been implicated in the first case where the plaintiff alleged that the four had gobbled up an amount of Tk 44 lakh for making a documentary on Chittagong titled "Muktijuddheh Chattagram" during the Awami League rule.

The ACC official in his second case alleged that the city mayor, Prof Iftekhar, Solaiman Chowdhury (also the former establishment secretary), Adbul Hoque and Mahmudul embezzled an amount of Tk 41,25,718 for conducting a population census of the CCC when AL was in power.

The city mayor was arrested in March on charges of corruption and irregularities.

UNB adds: An extortion case was filed against detained former state minister and LDP leader Redwan Ahmed in Comilla yesterday.

Advocate Abul Kashem of Mohichail village under Chandina upazila filed the case with a cognizance court, accusing Redwan, his brother Emran Ahmed and three others of demanding Tk two lakh in toll from him.

In the case statement, the complainant stated that as he failed to meet the demand, the accused plundered his business house and took away Tk 1.50 lakh in cash on September 3, 2002. They also evicted him from his land.

The court sent the case to Chandina Police Station for investigation.