Under pressure from different lobbies and also for legal reasons, the government is considering refund of the money deposited to the exchequer following anti-corruption drives during the last caretaker government.
Bangladesh Bank on Monday sent the finance ministry a list of 16 firms and individuals who deposited "illegally earned" Tk 1,232 crore to the Fakhruddin Ahmed-led caretaker government's exchequer.
A meeting of high officials of Bangladesh Bank and finance ministry with Finance Minister AMA Muhith in the chair discussed the matter. The BB sent the list after the meeting.
A government source said there is a pressure on the government to return the amount while the government is also looking into the legality of the procedure through which the money was taken from these organisations and individuals.
Proper legal framework was not followed while collecting the amount, said different sources, adding that the money was rather collected in the spirit of punishing corruption suspects.
If the government now wants to return the money, which has already been spent, it would have to make a new provision in the budget for that purpose, finance ministry sources said.
A government agency, which was very active during the caretaker government's rule, collected the money from individuals arrested on charges of corruption and money laundering and deposited it to the exchequer.
Names of a few of these 16 institutions and persons appeared several times in the media as they deposited money on different dates. Two of them deposited money in foreign currencies.
Bashundhara Group and its sister concern East West Property Development deposited Tk 256 crore in five instalments.
James Finley deposited Tk 238 crore in two instalments.
AB Bank deposited Tk 190.41 crore and the AB Bank Foundation gave Tk 32.13 crore.
Swadesh Properties deposited Tk 9 crore, Hosaf Group Tk 15 crore, Eastern Housing (Islam Group) Tk 35 crore, Partex Group Tk 15 crore and Elite Paints Tk 25.44 crore, all in two instalments.
Tk 8 crore was realised from Concord Engineering and Construction, Tk 7 crore from Concord Real Estate and Building Products, Tk 1 crore from Asian City, Tk 6.41 crore from Pink City, Tk 19.45 crore from Bangladesh Ship Breakers Association, Tk 1.30 crore from Amin Mohammad Group, Tk 23.80 crore from MGH Group, Tk 32.50 crore from Amin Mohammad Foundation, Tk 39 crore from National Bank and Tk 2.50 crore from Sagufta Housing.
Salimul Haq Kamal deposited Tk 20 crore for Lutfozzaman Babar. Babar had taken the amount as bribe from a big businessman when he was the state minister for home.
Businessman Noor Ali deposited money in two instalments--Tk 13.54 crore in foreign currency and Tk 13 crore in local currency. Md Shahjahan of Kabir Steel deposited Tk 7 crore.
Rezaul Karim deposited Tk 16.92 crore, Abu Sufian Tk 14 crore, Shawkat Ali Chowdhury Tk 6 crore, Wakil Ahmed Tk 16 crore, Lutfozzaman Babar Tk 15 crore, Nurul Islam Babul of Jamuna Group Tk 30 crore in two instalments, Mamun Tk 20.41 crore, Manik Tk 4 crore, Parveen Shikder Tk 3 crore and Abdul Awal Mintoo Tk 2.20 crore.
The list also has an anonymous entry for Tk 90 crore deposited in four instalments, one in foreign currency worth about Tk 11 crore.