Of greed and graft: A family feud over Tk100cr

Two accused in an embezzlement case will not be able to file any bail petitions with any court for the next four months, said the High Court (HC) on Tuesday after detecting their bail fraud.  

The accused are Akila Sharifa Sultana Khanam Anjuyara and her husband Anowar Hossen Rana. In the embezzlement case, they have been behind bars for four months. 

In 2015, Anjuyara's mother Delwara Begum made the daughter a director of their family business Sharif Bidi– a popular tobacco brand in the northern region. According to the case statement, Anjuyara along with her husband misappropriated at least Tk100 crore after assuming positions in the company.  

On Tuesday, an HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Md Mostafizur Rahman rejected the couple's bail plea, and issued the ruling barring them from filing further bail petitions in the next four months.

Deputy Attorney General Sarwar Hossain Bappi represented the state during the hearing while lawyer Golam Abbas Chowdhury moved for the accused.  

During the hearing, the defence lawyer claimed he did not know his clients had applied for bail with two separate HC benches prior to moving for the third one.  

But Deputy Attorney General Bappi said, "You cannot shrug off responsibility just like that. "This is certainly deception with the court and there is no scope for considering the bail plea," he argued.

Meanwhile, the HC said, "The accused duo seem very smart. Their embezzled amount too looks hefty. Their desperation to get bail is surprising."

During the hearing, the defence lawyer prayed for reducing the ban on bail petitions to two months. But the court said it was not possible since the order had already been pronounced.  

Anjuyara's mother Delwara Begum had been looking after the tobacco business after the death of her father Sheikh Sharif Uddin in 2015. But due to old age ailments, the mother asked her daughter and son-in-law to look after the family business.

After taking charge, the daughter and son-in-law forcibly took stamps, bank cheques, fixed deposit receipts and business documents from Delwara. Besides, the couple misappropriated a total of Tk100 crore of the company by making false documents. 

On 5 October last year, Delwara Begum filed a case against five people, including Anjuyara and Rana, with Bogura Sadar Police Station. 

Subsequently, the couple filed an anticipatory bail petition with the HC. But the HC rejected the bail plea, and ordered them to surrender before the lower court.

On 25 October, the couple were sent to jail after they surrendered before the lower court.

On 3 December, a bail plea of the accused was turned down by Bogura District and Sessions Judge's Court. Challenging the order, they then moved the HC. 

In December last year, a bench of Justice AKM Abdul Hakim and Justice Fatema Najib issued a rule asking why the accused would not be granted bail.

In the second bail attempt with the HC, they filed another bail application with the HC bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Khandaker Diliruzzaman, concealing the information that they had already a rule which was pending. 

Before appealing with the third HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Md Mostafizur Rahman, the defendants withdrew the two earlier petitions. In the third appeal to the HC bench, they concealed their previous court records.  

Court sources said Rana was joint secretary of Bogura's Nandigram Upazila Awami League and also a member of BoguraZila Parishad. ***