Staff Reporter :
The High Court (HC) on Tuesday said that it will observe the steps taken by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) against its officers who were found responsible for the sufferings of Jahlam, a Jute mills worker wrongly languished in jail for three years whereas the real accused was at large.
The HC Bench of Justice F R M Nazmul Ahasan and Justice K M Kamrul Kader passed the observation after hearing on a report submitted by the ACC and fixed July 21 for further hearing on the issue. On July 11, 2019, the ACC acknowledged that it was the mistake of its investigation officers who labeled Jahlam as Abu Salek, the real accused on the charge of misappropriating Tk 18.5 crore from Sonali Bank’s Cantonment Branch.
The commission admitted it in an investigation report submitted in the High Court (HC) on that day.
Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan appeared in the court for the ACC, while Advocate Amit Das Gupta stood for Jahlam. Advocate Md Asaduzzaman was present for the BRAC Bank and Barrister Sheikh Md Zakir Hossain for Sonali Bank.
The court said, “We are waiting to see what steps the ACC took against those officers whose names came in the report for Jahlam’s sufferings. Now we will give attention to the rule of compensation.”
Addressing to the ACC’s lawyer, the court said, “Keep this in mind that the officers whose names came in the report (ACC and bank officials) cann’t withdraw their money, especially the money of the Provident Fund.”
At this stage, lawyer of the Sonali Bank said, Sonali Bank has taken departmental action against the responsible officers.
On April 17, 2019, the High Court sought Anti-Corruption Commission’s probe report on Jahlam to see who were responsible for his sufferings. To comply with that HC order, the ACC submitted the report prepared by ACC Director (legal) Abul Hasnat Md Abdul Wadud.
In the report, Abul Hasnat said, “In the overall consideration, I have found that the mistake of identifying Jahlam as Abu Salek has happened due to the investigating officers of the ACC. The officials of BRAC and other banks and introducers of the fake person of that particular account helped the ACC officers mislead them. But it was the duty of the investigation officers to submit the real story in the court.”
Meanwhile, on March 5, 2019, counselor of the ACC told the High Court that the ACC was not responsible for Jahlam imprisonment.
A report was filed that day with the High Court on behalf of the ACC saying that the cases against Jahlam were filed on basis of documents received from Bangladesh Bank and Sonali Bank. The ACC has no jurisdiction to avoid the documents provided by the banks.
Jahlam, who wrongly languished in jail since February 2016, was released on February 4 this year following an HC directive after newspapers reported about his ordeal.
The ACC filed 33 cases against innocent Jahlam after labeling him as Abu Salek, the real accused on the charge of misappropriating Tk 18.5 crore from Sonali Bank’s Cantonment Branch.
Recently, different media outlets reported that Jahlam was wrongly accused, after which the ACC investigated the matter further. Then the commission found the claim to be true.
The HC Bench of Justice F R M Nazmul Ahasan and Justice K M Kamrul Kader on January 28 issued the Suo Moto rule asking the ACC and the government to explain as to why they should not be directed to compensate Jahlam for his wrongly suffering in jail for three years in connection with the ACC’s cases.
During hearing on the rule on March 6, the HC Bench said the ACC must take the responsibility for Jahlam not getting bail much earlier.
The court said, “The ACC should have taken the initiatives for the bail of Jahlam as soon as the organisation came to know that he was innocent. Jahlam was repeatedly saying that he was innocent. Public Prosecutors knew that, but they did not take any action. So, the ACC will have to take the liability for this.”
