SAHIDUL ISLAMThe National Coordination Committee Against Corruption and Crime (NCCACC) has found allegations of various corruption and other crimes against former BNP lawmaker Sahidul Islam correct.
Shahidul was lawmaker from Kushtia-2 (Mirpur-Bheramara) constituency since 1996.
A NCCACC team visited Kushtia to investigate the allegations against him. The team visited different areas and talked to people including those who filed complaints or cases against Shahidul at different times, sources close to the probe team said.
The team also visited some government and non-government offices and seized documents on alleged corruption and crimes by the former lawmaker and his men during the alst 10 years.
The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) will lodge case against the former lawmaker after the team submits its report, ACC sources here said.
The team led by two high officials of the army stayed in Kushtia for two days. It left several days ago after completing the investigation, the sources said.
Sahidul Islam, also president of Kushtia BNP, was on the ACC list of 20 top 'corruption suspects' announced in March this year. He is on the run since proclamation of emergency.
Law enforcement agencies including joint forces raided his house several times but could not arrest him, police said earlier.
Sahidul faces 11 cases for alleged involvement in murder, extortion, vandalising opposition rallies and torturing journalists.
Most of the cases were filed after expiry of tenure of the BNP-Jamaat government. Seven cases were filed on February 12.
Police so far submitted charge sheet in only one case regarding attack on a journalists' convention in Kushtia on May 29 last year. Sahidul was prime accused in the case.
Another former lawmaker from Kushtia-4 (Khoksa-Kumarkhali) Syed Mehedi Ahmed Rumi is also included in the charge sheet as an accused.
Police said the rest of the cases are being investigated.
The team visited some educational institutions in Sahiduls's constituency (Mirpur and Bheramara) including Bheramara Adarsha College and Halsha Degree College and seized some documents.
The documents include one on alleged misappropriation of Tk 12 lakh which was sanctioned for salary of 32 teachers.
Sources said Sahidul drew the money by taking blank signatures from 32 teachers of Bheramara Adarsha College. He was president of the college governing body in 2002.
Rafiqul Islam, one of the teachers filed a case against Sahidul for misappropriating the money. The case is still pending.
The team also probed Sahidul's educational qualification. A probe body headed by the then Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Kushtia during investigation found that Sahidul's Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) certificate was fake. He was removed as a lecturer of Zoology from Bheramara College in 1981 after his certificate was found fake, sources said.
The team also visited some buildings constructed in Mirpur and Bheramara during the tenure of the BNP-led coalition government. A few construction companies built all the buildings under different government projects.
Allegations have it that six of the companies were owned by Sahidul's close relatives.
It was gathered that at least Tk 600 crore were involved in implementation of the developments projects in Mirpur-Bheramara upazilas during the five years' BNP rule.
It is alleged that lion shares of the funds were misappropriated by BNP men led by Sahidul Islam.
Of the works, the highest amount of Tk 85 crore was spent for construction of the Sagarkhali-Barabila irrigation project in Amla in Mirpur upazila. The project was implemented by a firm owned by Sahidul's "close relative".
The NCCACC team visited the Sagarkhali-Barabila irrigation project and seized documents from offices concerned, sources said.
The team also visited some sand quarries in Padma river, which were forcibly occupied by Shahidul's musclemen in the name of lease.
The team also checked Sahidul's wealth statement submitted by his wife Selina Shahid to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on September 14.
At least 20 journalists in Kushtia were subjected to torture allegedly by Shahidul's musclemen during the period, sources said.
Any journalist who wrote on alleged corruption or repression by Shahidul or his men faced threats, cases or attacks, or was forced to leave the district.
The former lawmaker used another tool to silence journalists. He let loose outlaws against media men who wrote against him.
Sahidul's cadres attacked a journalists' convention held in Kushtia town on May 29 last year. Twenty-five journalists including Observer Editor Iqbal Sobhan Choudhury were injured in the attack.
Kushtia Reporters Unity called the convention to protest filing of false cases against three Kushtia journalists filed by Sahidul on May 9.
