Siphoning off Money: Charges against expelled Jubo League leader Samrat accepted

A Dhaka court today accepted charges against expelled Jubo League leader Ismail Hossain Chowdhury Samrat in a case filed for siphoning off around Tk 222 crore and channelling it to casinos in Singapore and Malaysia between 2011 and 2018.

Judge KM Emrul Kayesh of Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Court passed the order in presence of Samrat after scrutinising the case dockets and other relevant documents.

Earlier in the day, Samrat was brought before the court by an ambulance from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) where he was admitted for treatment.

The court fixed March 31 for hearing on his bail petition after defence lawyer submitted it on March 7 on grounds that their client had suffering from different ailments including heart disease.

Moreover, he had been languishing in jail since October 2019 and staying BSMMU for a long time, the lawyer added.

The judge also fixed the same date for hearing on charge framing against him in the case.

Earlier on December 7 of 2020, ACC Deputy Director Jahangir Alam, also the investigation officer (IO) of the case, submitted the charge sheet against Samrat, a "kingpin" of illegal casino businesses in the capital, to the Senior Special Judge's Court of Dhaka.

On November 12 of 2019, the ACC filed the case against Samrat with its Integrated District office-1 of Dhaka for amassing illegal wealth of Tk 2.94 crore.