Kazi Zahidul Hasan :
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has summoned 11 Bangladeshis among 32 whose names appeared in the Panama Papers.
It has already sent notices to them to question in connection with the Panama Papers scandal, official sources said on Monday.
They said, the persons would be asked whether they held any undisclosed offshore accounts and if they have such accounts what was the purpose of their ‘clandestine’ financial transactions.
When contacted, ACC Secretary Abu Mohammad Mostafa Kamal confirmed the matter to The New Nation saying that they have been summoned for
interrogations over their alleged involvement with the offshore deals. “Nine of them have received their summon notices while two notices remained undelivered because the respondents were not found in their present addresses,” he said, adding, “Among nine, three already faced ACC quizzing last week, he said. The ACC Secretary, however, declined to give details of the persons who have been summoned to face quizzing by the anti-graft body.
“We have launched the probe and it is now at the primary stage. We are trying to collect evidence from various sources,” he said.
Names of about 32 Bangladeshis, including top industrialists and politicians, featured in the millions of documents leaked from Mossack Fonseca, the Panama law firm that is at the centre of a massive global controversy for allegedly helping wealthy and powerful people in making shady and secret investments.
Earlier, the ACC formed a three-member probe panel to investigate into the tax-dodging allegation by the Bangladeshis named in the Panama Papers.
“Summons would be sent to everyone named in the papers. Then their statement would be recorded,” another ACC official requesting anonymity told The New Nation on Monday.
He said, the persons would be asked how their names featured in the documents. ACC will check whether they siphoned off money earned in Bangladesh or violated any law while making investments abroad.
“We would investigate each and every Bangladeshis whose names appeared in the Panama Papers,” he added.
When asked, the ACC official said, they are considering seeking information from the Panama government about the Bangladeshis linked to the Panama Papers through the diplomatic channels. The Panama Papers have become a global scandal, sparking investigations and resignations world-wide. About 11.5 million leaked documents, from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, revealed the large-scale use of offshore entities to conceal assets from tax authorities.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has summoned 11 Bangladeshis among 32 whose names appeared in the Panama Papers.
It has already sent notices to them to question in connection with the Panama Papers scandal, official sources said on Monday.
They said, the persons would be asked whether they held any undisclosed offshore accounts and if they have such accounts what was the purpose of their ‘clandestine’ financial transactions.
When contacted, ACC Secretary Abu Mohammad Mostafa Kamal confirmed the matter to The New Nation saying that they have been summoned for
interrogations over their alleged involvement with the offshore deals. “Nine of them have received their summon notices while two notices remained undelivered because the respondents were not found in their present addresses,” he said, adding, “Among nine, three already faced ACC quizzing last week, he said. The ACC Secretary, however, declined to give details of the persons who have been summoned to face quizzing by the anti-graft body.
“We have launched the probe and it is now at the primary stage. We are trying to collect evidence from various sources,” he said.
Names of about 32 Bangladeshis, including top industrialists and politicians, featured in the millions of documents leaked from Mossack Fonseca, the Panama law firm that is at the centre of a massive global controversy for allegedly helping wealthy and powerful people in making shady and secret investments.
Earlier, the ACC formed a three-member probe panel to investigate into the tax-dodging allegation by the Bangladeshis named in the Panama Papers.
“Summons would be sent to everyone named in the papers. Then their statement would be recorded,” another ACC official requesting anonymity told The New Nation on Monday.
He said, the persons would be asked how their names featured in the documents. ACC will check whether they siphoned off money earned in Bangladesh or violated any law while making investments abroad.
“We would investigate each and every Bangladeshis whose names appeared in the Panama Papers,” he added.
When asked, the ACC official said, they are considering seeking information from the Panama government about the Bangladeshis linked to the Panama Papers through the diplomatic channels. The Panama Papers have become a global scandal, sparking investigations and resignations world-wide. About 11.5 million leaked documents, from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, revealed the large-scale use of offshore entities to conceal assets from tax authorities.
