The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed two separate cases against Saima Wazed Putul, daughter of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, for allegedly obtaining appointment as WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia through using false information and extracting Tk 33 crore from 20 banks in the name of Shuchona Foundation.
ACC Director General (Prevention) Md Akhter Hossain told journalists that the ACC Deputy Director Tahsin Munabil Haque filed two cases at the ACC’s Integrated District Office Dhaka-1 today.
In one case, Saima Wazed Putul has been accused of abusing power, doing fraudulence, and forgery to secure the position of Regional Director of the World Health Organization’s South-East Asia Regional Office.
The second case alleged that Saima Wazed Putul and Nazrul Islam Mazumder colluded to misuse their power and exert undue influence over member banks of the Bangladesh Association of Banks, compelling them to contribute Tk 33.05 crore from their corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds to Shuchona Foundation, where Putul herself was the chairperson.
According to the case statement, Putul is accused of fabricating credentials in her application for the WHO Regional Director post in 2023.
Despite having no such engagement, the ACC stated that Putul had made fraudulent claims to be teaching and evaluating educational manuals at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University–BSMMU (now Bangladesh Medical University).
Saima Wazed allegedly stated in her application that she was a “Honorary Specialist/Expert at BSMMU (2022-Present), providing technical expertise on autism spectrum disorder and mental health, and reviewing manuals for the care and management of developmental disorders on her resume.
However, upon investigation, the BSMMU authorities confirmed that she never held such a position or participated in any academic or research activities related to manual development.
The ACC has charged her under Sections 420, 468, and 471 of the Penal Code, along with Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act of 1947, for allegedly misrepresenting her qualifications to secure the WHO role.
Section 109 of the Penal Code and Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act have been invoked in the case.
According to the case statement, the ACC headquarters carried out an enforcement action against the Shuchona Foundation in January of last year. However, the Shuchona Foundation did not have a physical office.
According to the research, Putul and Nazrul put pressure on banks to give money to the foundation on a regular basis. 17 banks were compelled to provide Tk 21 crore from their CSR contributions in May 2017.
In the end, Tk 33.05 crore was provided by 20 banks.
Since the organisation had no physical existence, the ACC suspects that the money was embezzled through forged records, which will be thoroughly examined during the investigation.
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