The UK has sought explicit recordsdata referring to funds allegedly laundered from Bangladesh to the UK by influential figures of the previous Awami League authorities thru tax evasion and other illicit potential.
In a gathering with the Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) of the National Board of Earnings (NBR) at the NBR place of work within the capital the day gone by, a delegation from the British Excessive Commission in Dhaka mentioned that having true recordsdata would facilitate the UK’s relieve in repatriating these funds thru authentic authorities channels.
In quest of anonymity, a senior CIC authentic who used to be recent within the meeting in point of fact useful TBS, “The delegation mentioned that particular particular person recordsdata on tax evasion and money laundering cases would produce it less difficult for them to motivate us. For this, they emphasised coordinating efforts amongst the CIC, the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit, and other linked organisations.”
“The UK representatives assured us of their fat relieve within the efforts to recuperate funds laundered from Bangladesh,” the authentic added.
British Excessive Commission’s Head of Political and Governance Timothy Duckett led the three-member delegation at some stage within the NBR meeting.
TBS despatched an electronic mail to the British Excessive Commission in Dhaka to query about this, nonetheless there used to be no rapid response.
Earlier on 6 October, a British delegation met with the Anti-Corruption Commission and assured fat relieve in repatriating laundered funds.
An investigative sage by Al Jazeera claims that Bangladesh’s dilapidated land minister, Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, owns property valued at over $500 million, including 360 properties across the UK and other international locations.
Following this sage, native authorities began gathering minute print.
The Central Intelligence Cell of the NBR performed a preliminary inquiry and came upon that Saifuzzaman declared a score asset price of Tk18.77 crore in his 2023-24 tax returns, with an earnings of Tk74 lakh for the identical duration, on which he paid Tk19.26 lakh in taxes.
Beneath Bangladesh’s earnings tax legislation, people ought to expose any in a international nation property in their tax filings, whatever the put the earnings used to be earned. Nonetheless, CIC recordsdata implies that Chowdhury did no longer sage any international property.
“There were preliminary discussions with the British delegation, and further discussions will happen on future cooperation,” mentioned the CIC authentic.
“We [NBR] get initiated the approach of sending a letter to the linked UK department in this regard,” he added.
