The Supreme Court yesterday ordered Jatiya Party lawmaker Shawkat Chowdhury to return Tk 5 crore to Bangladesh Commerce Bank Ltd (BCBL) in two months.

If he (Shawkat) does not comply with the order his bail in loan scam cases will be cancelled, the apex court ruled.

A five-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Justice Md Abdul Wahhab Miah, who is carrying out responsibilities of the chief justice, passed the order after modifying a High Court directive.

The apex court passed the order after hearing two petitions filed by Shawkat seeking extension of his stay order on HC directive and by ACC seeking cancellation of the stay order.

Shawkat Chowdhury has to pay Tk 5 crore in two months after receiving the SC order, ACC lawyer Khurshid Alom Khan told The Daily Star.

On October 22, the HC directed Shawkat to pay Tk 25 crore to BCBL in 50 days.

In failure to comply within 50 days after receiving the order, Shawkat's bail in the cases, filed over misappropriation of Tk 94 crore as loan from the bank, will automatically be cancelled, the HC said in the order. Later on, following a petition filed by Shawkat, the SC stayed the HC order.

On May 8 and 10 last year, the ACC filed two cases with Bangshal Police Stations in Dhaka against Shawkat, a lawmaker from Nilphamari; Mohammad Asaduzzaman, the then managing director of BCBL; Habibul Gani, the then manager of BCBL Bangshal branch; and six others.

According to the cases, Shawkat, also managing director of Jamuna Agro Chemical Ltd, with the connivance of the other accused, misappropriated Tk 94 crore from a branch of BCBL between 2012 and 2015. Shawkat got bail from the lower court on September 8 and October 4 last year.