ACC contacts Interpol to bring back PK Halder

The Anti-Corruption Commission on Monday said that it had communicated with the Interpol to bring back former NRB Global Bank managing director Prasanta Kumar Halder, better known as PK Halder, and five of his associates to Bangladesh from India.

‘Our relevant desk in the police department relating to the Interpol has already communicated with its Indian counterpart in this regard. They [Indian authorities] also want to send him to Bangladesh,’ ACC director general Syed Mahbub Khan told reporters at a press briefing at his office in the capital.

PK Halder, who is facing investigations in 34 ACC cases over his alleged embezzlement of about Tk 6,500 crore from four leasing companies, and the five associates were arrested by India’s Directorate of Enforcement in West Bengal on May 14.

According to the ACC, it has already submitted a charge sheet in a case against PK Haldar over his alleged accumulation of illegal wealth while the investigations in some other cases are almost in the finale stage.

‘Against this backdrop, we sat in the commission, asking for directions on what we should do and the commission gave some directions,’ said Syed Mahbub, adding that the commission will write to the foreign and home ministries and the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit seeking their assistance for brining PK Halder back to the country.

‘We have already had some information about properties of PK Halder in India. We are getting more information. We will request the BFIU to provide elaborate information,’ he said, adding that the commission has also requested the Bangladesh high commission in India to collect as much information as possible from the courts there.

Besides, several Indian media outlets on Monday reported that the Enforcement Directorate had taken PK Halder to Bidhannagar Sub-Divisional Hospital in Bidhannagar in greater Kolkata region for some medical tests.

On the hospital premises, PK Halder told reporters that he wanted to go back to Bangladesh, claiming that the allegations raised against him are not true.

Meanwhile, after the arrest of PK Halder and his associates, Biman Bose, a West Bengal politician and the chair of the state’s Left Front committee, told reporters on Monday that it had become a culture to take shelter in India after committing crimes in Bangladesh.

Offenders, he went on to say, think that if they flee to India, no one will be able to catch them.

In another development, Bangladesh’s High Court on Monday observed that the country should thank India for detaining PK Halder, who is wanted in three dozen cases relating to fraud and money laundering. 

A bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo made the observation when state law officer AKM Amin Uddin Manik informed the court of the arrest of PK Halder in West Bengal.   

‘I informed the court of PK Halder’s arrest in my capacity on the basis of media reports as the High Court in a ruling suo motu on November 19, 2020 asked the government and the Anti-Corruption Commission to explain in 10 days what steps were taken to bring him back to the country,’ Amin told New Age.

The court in the November 19, 2020 ruling also asked the ACC chair, the home secretary and the deputy commissioner of Dhaka to explain why their failure to bring PK Halder back to the country should not be declared illegal.

The respondents were also asked to explain why they should not be directed to take action against those who had failed to bring PK Halder back to the country.

The state law officer disclosed that the High Court would set a date for hearing the PK Halder matter today.

‘We will provide the court with updated information on the PK Halder matter in consultation with the government if the court asks us to do so,’ he further said.

The Enforcement Directorate said that PK Halder was found in the phoney identity of an Indian citizen as Shibshankar Halder, adding that during searches it was revealed that PK Halder, along with his associates, fraudulently obtained various government identities like ration card, Indian voter ID card, permanent account number card or PAN card and Aadhaar card.

The details of the arrested persons as provided by the directorate are Prashanta Kumar Halder alias Prashanta Halder alias Shib Shankar Halder, Swapan Maitra alias Swapan Mistry, Uttam Maitra alias Uttam Mistry, Imam Hossian alias Imon Halder, Amana Sultana alias Sharmee Halder and and Pranesh Kumar Halder.

According to the ACC, PK Halder is under investigation on charge of stealing and laundering about Tk 6,500 crore from four leasing companies between 2009 and 2019.

The companies are People’s Leasing and Financial Services Ltd, International Leasing and Financial Services Ltd, FAS Finance and Investment Ltd and Reliance Finance Ltd.

News Courtesy:

https://www.newagebd.net/article/170727/acc-contacts-interpol-to-bring-back-pk-halder