ACC sues Hasina, Khaleda in Niko scam cases

Dhaka, Dec 9 (bdprem.com) – The Anticorruption Commission Sunday sued Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia in separate cases that involve awarding deals to Canadian oil company Niko Resources by abusing power, police said. Inspector Lutfar Rahman, OC of Tejgaon Police Station, told bdprem.com that two ACC deputy directors had filed separate cases against the two former prime ministers. Six other persons have been accused in the case filed against Hasina by ACC deputy director AMM Sabbir Hasan. Your Ad Here They are former state minister for energy Prof Rafiqul Islam, former principal secretary to the Prime Minister's Office SA Samad, and former energy secretaries Toufique-e-Elahi Chowdhury and M Akmal Hossain, former Petrobangla chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain and Niko Resources official Kashem Sharif. The case filed against Khaleda also involves former minister barrister Moudud Ahmed, former state minister for energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain, former acting secretary Khandaker Shahidul Islam and Kashem Sharif. Kashem is accused in both cases. Another ACC deputy director, Mahbubul Alam, filed the case against Khaleda. The then prime minister Sheikh Hasina approved a Niko deal on June 14, 2001, which cost the government Tk 13,630.50 crore in lost revenue, according to case details. The case alleged that Niko Resources was "very inefficient" in different aspects, including technical know-how for oil explorations, but the deal was approved. The BNP-led government also connived with Niko in implementing an "illegal" joint venture agreement soon after the alliance assumed power in October 2001. Niko applied to state minister for energy Mosharraf Hossain to close the deal, but some experts of Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company and Petrobangla opposed the agreement, according to the details of the case filed against Khaleda. Khaleda, the then prime minister, allegedly ignored opinions of the gas experts and took sides with Niko on the deal, costing the state Tk 10,000 crore in losses.