Muhammad Yunus demands return of stolen billions in Bangladesh

admin — Wed, 15 Jan 2025 06:39:54 +0000

Chief Adviser Prof. Muhammad Yunus stated that funds stolen from Bangladesh belong to its people and will continue working with international partners for justice. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday (January 15, 2025) demanded the return of stolen assets, decrying the scale of corruption under the ousted government of Sheikh Hasina, toppled by a revolution last year.

Ms. Hasina (77) fled a revolution in August 2024 to India, where she has defied extradition requests from Bangladesh to face charges including mass murder.

Also read: Ground zero | The making of the Bangladesh revolt

“The theft of billions of dollars in public funds has left Bangladesh with a significant financial deficit,” Mr. Yunus said in a statement.

“The funds stolen from Bangladesh belong to its people. We will continue to work with our international partners to ensure that justice is done,” he added.

Mr. Yunus said he expected “assets to be returned”, adding that the stolen funds have “not only robbed the people of Bangladesh, but also disrupted the country’s progress toward economic stability”.

Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is investigating Hasina and her wider family, including her niece, British lawmaker and anti-corruption Minister Tulip Siddiq.

Ms. Siddiq on Tuesday resigned (January 14, 2025) from her position, but repeated her denial that she had done anything wrong.

The ACC’s probe of Ms. Hasina’s family is linked to the embezzlement of $5 billion connected to a Russian-funded nuclear power plant, as well as an alleged land grab of lucrative plots in a suburb of the capital Dhaka.

ABritish Sunday Times investigation revealed details about the claims Ms. Siddiq spent years living in a London flat bought by an offshore company connected to two Bangladeshi businessmen.

The flat was eventually transferred as a gift to a Bangladeshi lawyer with links to Ms. Hasina, her family and her ousted government, according to the newspaper.

It also reported Ms. Siddiq and her family were given or used several other London properties bought by members or associates of Ms. Hasina’s Awami League party.

“Tulip Siddiq may not have fully understood the origins of the money and properties she enjoyed in London,” Mr. Yunus said.

“However, now that she knows, she should seek forgiveness from the people of Bangladesh,” he said.

Published – January 15, 2025 12:09 pm IST

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Rooppur nuclear power project for the well being of the people of Bangladesh: Rosatom

admin — Tue, 24 Dec 2024 06:36:31 +0000

A view of the Rooppur nuclear powerplant in Bangladesh. File photo

Russian nuclear major Rosatom on Tuesday (December 24, 2024) said the Bangladesh anti-graft commission’s remarks are “an attempt to discredit” the Rooppur nuclear power project. In a statement issued to the media, Rosatom reiterated that the $2.65 billion Rooppur project is transparent and that it is ready to defend the case in a court of law.

“Rosatom is committed to a policy of openness and the principle of combating corruption in all its projects and maintains a transparent procurement system. External audits regularly confirm the openness of the business processes of the project. Rosatom State Corporation is ready to defend its interests and reputation in court,” Rosatom said in a statement sent to The Hindu.

The statement from Rosatom came a day after the Anti-Corruption Commission of Bangladesh came out with a statement alleging that deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her family members including her niece the UK MP Tulip Siddiq laundered around $900 million to offshore outfits in Malaysia. The commission cited an internal investigative report and stated that it has discovered around $5 billion “irregularities” in the Rooppur nuclear power project that has been under the works since 2011.

Rosatom described the anti-corruption outfit of Bangladesh as “provocative” and said, “We consider false statements in the media as an attempt to discredit the Rooppur NPP project, which is being implemented to solve the country’s energy supply problems and is aimed at improving the well-being of the people of Bangladesh.”

The Hindu had reported earlier, that Tulip Siddiq who is a Labour MP in the United Kingdom and has been facing scrutiny in the UK since the fall of the government of her aunt Sheikh Hasina, was involved in an elaborate scheme to launder money that involved her paternal uncle Tarique Ahmed Siddique. Tulip Siddiq and her family members are stakeholders in a company named Prochchaya which along with another entity Destinty Group had laundered $900 million, the Anti-Corruption Commission in Bangladesh had alleged.

Published – December 24, 2024 12:06 pm IST

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Rooppur nuclear power project – Artifex.News

Muhammad Yunus demands return of stolen billions in Bangladesh

Rooppur nuclear power project for the well being of the people of Bangladesh: Rosatom