Court Correspondent :
A Dhaka court yesterday directed the authorities concerned to publish a gazette asking former Managing Director of NRB Global Bank Prashanta Kumar Halder, better known as PK Halder, and nine others to appear in the court in connection with a case filed on the charges of amassing wealth worth about Tk 426 crore beyond his known sources of income and transaction of Tk 6,080 crore through different bank accounts.
PK Halder and four others were arrested in India on May 14. But the matter will not be taken into consideration until or unless he is brought back to Bangladesh, said ACC Public Prosecutor Mir Ahmed Ali Salam.
Judge KM Emrul Kayesh of the Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Court of
Dhaka passed order after getting reports from different police stations of the capital on execution of arrest warrants issued against PK Halder and nine others.
Other accused people are- PK Halder’s mother Lilaboti Halder, Purnimarani Halder, Uttar Kumar, Amitava Adhikari, his brother Pritish Kumar Halder, Rajib Som, Subrata Das, Ananga Mohon Roy and Swapon Kumar.
The court also directed to publish the gazette by July7.
Earlier, the ACC submitted charge sheet against 14 accused including PK Halder. The names of four accused are- PK Halder’s friend Abontika Boral, Sangkha Bepari, Sukumar Mridha and Anindita Mridha and they are behind the bar. They were produced in the court on Wednesday. ACC Court Inspector and Assistant Director Aminul Islam confirmed the news to the media.
The charge sheet also says that PK Halder laundered money to Canada equivalent to one crore 17 lakh Canadian dollar.
On January 8, 2020, ACC Assistant Director Mamunur Rashid Chowdhury filed the case on the charge of amassing about Tk 275 crore to the Coordinated District Office of the ACC.
The FIR of the case says PK Halder acquired illegal assets worth 274 crore 91 lakh 55 thousand 355 through unknown sources of income, which is punishable under section 27(1) of the ACC Act. In the process he also made money laundering offence.
Meanwhile, the court on Wednesday rejected a bail petition of PK Halder’s close aide Anindita Mridha after her lawyer moved it on the ground that she had been in jail since January 2021.
On March 27, the same court accepted the charges against PK Halder and 13 others of the case.
The court also issued arrest warrants against PK Halder and seven others as they were shown “fugitives” in the charge sheet of the case.
Seven others who face arrest warrants are: PK Halder’s mother Lilabati Halder, his brother Pritish Kumar Halder, Purnima Rani Halder, Amitav Adhikari, Rajib Som, Subrata Das and Ananga Mohon Roy.
