Three NHA officials jailed in 22-year old graft case

A Dhaka court yesterday sentenced Rafiqul Mohammed, a former joint secretary of National Housing Authority, to five years in jail in a graft case filed in 1997.

The court also sentenced upper division assistant Moral Kafil Uddin and lower division assistant Abdul Zalil Khandaker, of the body to three years' imprisonment each in the 22-year-old case.

Rafiqul was fined Tk 25,000, in default of which he will serve three additional months in jail, while the two others were fined Tk 10,000 each.  

Judge Shaikh Nazmul Alam of Special Judge Court-4 of Dhaka handed down the sentence in presence of the

convicts.

According to the case statement, four persons embezzled government property in collusion with each other and abusing power for their personal benefit.

One of the accused, Abul Hashem Mollah, who died during the trial, took re-allotment of a government plot concealing information and showing fake papers.

On June 2003, Anti-Corruption Commission Inspector Md Roisuddin filed the case with Ramna Police Station accusing the four persons.

After an investigation, ACC Deputy Director Reva Halder submitted a charge-sheet against them on March 15, 2009 and the court framed charges on October 26, 2009.