ACC should not act like a toothless tiger: HC

The High Court yesterday observed that the Anti-Corruption Commission should not act like a toothless tiger in combatting corruption and irregularities.

The commission must "bite the corrupt people" to secure the national interest. The relevant law should be reformed to ensure that tax payers disclose their assets at home and abroad, the court noted.

The HC bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Mohi Uddin Shamim made the observation while hearing a writ petition filed for bringing back the money laundered from the country and deposited with foreign banks, including those in Switzerland.

During the hearing, lawyer Abdul Qaium Khan, one of the petitioners, told the court that money laundering from the county has gone up at an alarming rate in recent years.

Malaysia has become a second home of some Bangladeshi money launderers, he pointed out.

The authorities concerned, including the ACC and Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit, have failed miserably to prevent money laundering and bring back the money to the country, the lawyer argued.

The HC bench fixed tomorrow for further hearing.

Talking to The Daily Star, Deputy Attorney General AKM Amin Uddin Manik said ACC's counsel Khurshid Alam Khan is expected to place his argument tomorrow.

Qaium, along with  lawyer Subir Nandi Das, filed the writ petition with the HC as a public interest litigation on February 1, seeking its directive on the authorities to take steps to bring back the money that Bangladeshi nationals and organisations laundered abroad and deposited with foreign banks, including Swiss banks.

In the petition, they prayed to the HC for an order to constitute a special investigation team to find out Bangladeshi nationals' illegal money deposited with foreign banks.