Dhaka, Oct 12 (V7N) – The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) of Bangladesh has approved a case against former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, six former ministers, and several senior government officials, alleging massive financial irregularities and abuse of power in the toll collection contract for the Meghna-Gomti Bridge, resulting in a loss of hundreds of crores of taka to the government.

The approval was confirmed on Sunday, October 12, by ACC Deputy Director of Public Relations Md. Akhtarul Islam.

According to the case documents, in 2016, the toll collection rights were awarded to Computer Network Systems Limited (CNS) through a “direct procurement method,” bypassing the standard tendering process. The commission found that an earlier valid tender was canceled without justification, and no competitive discussions were held with other bidders before finalizing the agreement.

The ACC report states that CNS Limited was awarded the contract not for a fixed monetary amount but under a profit-sharing arrangement — receiving 17.75 percent of the total toll revenue (excluding VAT and IT charges) as service fees. Under this system, CNS reportedly collected more than Tk 489 crore in bills.

By contrast, from 2010 to 2015, toll operations for the same bridge were managed jointly by MBEL and ATT at a cost of just over Tk 15 crore. Later, for the 2022–2025 period, UDC Construction Limited secured a similar three-year contract for Tk 67 crore, which would amount to around Tk 112 crore if extended to five years. Based on this comparison, the ACC alleges that the single-source contract awarded to CNS caused a financial loss exceeding Tk 309 crore to the state.

The accused include former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina; former ministers Amir Hossain Amu, Tofail Ahmed, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Obaidul Quader, Anisul Huq, and State Minister M.A. Mannan; former secretary M.A.N. Siddique; additional secretary Md. Faruk Jalil; deputy secretary Mohammad Shafiqul Karim; engineers Md. Firoz Iqbal and Ibne Alam Hasan; officials Md. Aftab Hossain Khan and Md. Abdus Salam; and CNS Limited’s managing director Munir Uz Zaman Chowdhury, director Selina Chowdhury, and Ikram Iqbal.

According to the complaint, the accused conspired and abused their official authority to secure undue benefits for themselves or others through fraudulent and misappropriative actions. The charges fall under Sections 409, 420, and 109 of the Penal Code and Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947.

The ACC’s approval marks a significant step toward formal prosecution, signaling a new phase in anti-corruption efforts involving former high-ranking political and administrative figures.

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