Professional Misconduct: ICT prosecutor removed 4 yrs after suspension
Mohammad Ali has finally been removed from the post of prosecutor at the International Crimes Tribunal yesterday, almost four years after he was suspended over professional misconduct.
Since he was suspended in February 2016, he continued drawing a monthly salary of over Tk 1 lakh. He had used a government vehicle until last November. The government paid for its fuel and driver. Besides, there was an armed policeman for his safety.
The Law, Justice and Parliament Affairs Ministry spent more than Tk 55 lakh for his salary and benefits until yesterday, according to The Daily Star estimate.
In May 2017, over a year after he was suspended, this correspondent asked Law Minister Anisul Huq about the privileges enjoyed by Ali while on suspension. “He [Ali] was suspended and was supposed to resign and leave. I am looking into the matter,” the minister replied at the time.
But nothing was done until yesterday when the ministry issued a circular removing Ali from the post for “breaching discipline and professional conduct and committing serious misconduct”.
Asked about it, Anisul last night said, “Do you have any problem if we take action after verifying everything?”
About the government spending on someone who had not been discharging duties, the minister said, “Steps would be taken to get the money refunded.”
Ali, who had enjoyed the status of additional attorney general, was suspended on February 24, 2016, after the Chief Prosecutor’s Office of the tribunal wrote to the ministry, seeking “necessary actions” against him.
He joined as a prosecutor in October 2011.
On February 14, 2016 the Chief Prosecutor’s Office wrote to the ministry that Ali had “disobeyed” his assigned duties and tried to “exert illegal influence for securing bail for an accused in a case pending with the tribunal”.
On that day, the Chief Prosecutor’s Office withdrew Ali until further notice from all the war crimes cases. Ali, however, refuted the allegations against him.
Though the accused in question was not named in the letter, several prosecutors said it was Jatiya Party lawmaker MA Hannan, arrested in 2015 for his alleged crimes in 1971. The tribunal denied him bail on February 4, 2016. He is now in jail.
WASTE OF PUBLIC MONEY
Ali had been paid Tk 1,11,560 in salary and risk allowance and Tk 10,000 for fuel.
He received his salary until last month, said Prosecutor Zead Al Malum.
It is estimated that he had received around Tk 51 lakh in salary and about Tk 4.40 lakh in fuel costs.
Zead said Ali handed over the vehicle to the authorities in November last year when another prosecutor Tureen Afroz was removed for the post following allegations of misconduct. His police protection was withdrawn then.
“He has been wasting public money for the last four years. The government should have removed him much earlier,” Zead told The Daily Star yesterday.
The Chief Prosecutor’s Office sent a letter to the law ministry around a month ago to take action, he said.
Another prosecutor said, “He [Ali] used to come to the office once a month to collect his cheques.
“He enjoyed all the benefits we avail. The difference is we have to deal with the cases but he hadn’t,” the prosecutor said, wishing anonymity.
Contacted, Ali said, “I wanted to resign after I was withdrawn from the cases. But I was asked to stay in the post until the allegation was proved.”
But he didn’t say who asked him to occupy the post.
Ali, now a lawyer in High Court and Dhaka Judges Court, claimed that he used to go to his office once or twice a week.
“I withdrew the salary because I was not removed from my job.”
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