Bashundhara challenges CID allegations, calls for chief adviser's intervention

Bashundhara Group, one of Bangladesh's largest conglomerates, has sought the support of the interim government to safeguard its operations, the jobs of thousands of employees, and its reputation both domestically and internationally, following what it claims to be a smear campaign by certain state agencies.

In a letter addressed to Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on 2 October, Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, chairman of the group, expressed concerns over what he described as defamatory statements and propaganda being circulated by government bodies in the media, both at home and abroad.

The conglomerate, which employs over 80,000 people, pointed to a recent press release by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the police as an example.

On 5 September 2024, the CID issued a statement, widely reported in the media, accusing the company, its chairman, and its managing director of various crimes, including land grabbing, money laundering, and smuggling – all without, according to Bashundhara, any lawful basis.

The CID's release alleged that Bashundhara had illegally seized 1,016 acres of land, including 800 acres of government land and 216 acres of the Bhawal Raj Estate. It further claimed that most of the company's residential projects lacked proper approval, with only a small portion authorised by the city development authority, Rajuk.

In response, Bashundhara argued that the authority to determine the veracity of such serious charges lies with the courts, and to date, no ruling has been made against the group on the issue of land grabbing.

The company also dismissed the allegations of financial misconduct, including accusations of syphoning funds abroad through fraudulent loans, as speculative and unfounded.

Bashundhara maintains that such serious claims should be based on thorough investigations and concrete evidence. It further criticised the media for "irresponsibly" disseminating the allegations without proper verification, accusing both the CID and news outlets of undermining journalistic standards.

"No allegations of wrongdoing have ever been raised by any banks or financial institutions, including the central regulatory bank. On the contrary, Bashundhara Group has always maintained a flawless record of loan repayments without any instance of default over its 40 years of history," reads the letter.

"Moreover, the valuation of the lands mortgaged to banks as collaterals against its loans has multiplied manifold over the years, keeping the banks secured at all times."

Bashundhara Group has also refuted allegations of trade-based money laundering related to bitumen imports, asserting that it has never imported the material. Also, the group dismissed what it described as vague and fabricated accusations of gold smuggling and tax avoidance, claiming these were made without any legal basis or credible evidence.

According to Bashundhara, these accusations – disseminated by the CID and amplified by the media through what it termed "yellow journalism" – have been publicised even before a proper investigation.

"The dissemination, publication, and circulation of these unfounded vague allegations, made without any investigation whatsoever or without following due process of law, have severely tarnished and damaged the group's reputation and caused significant harm to its business operations as well as adversely affected thousands of employees and their family members whose livelihoods are directly associated with Bashundhara Group," reads the letter.

"Hence, we request your excellency (chief adviser) to instruct the authorities concerned to withdraw and remove from CID's website the said press release and to do the needful for mitigating and preventing the spread of disparaging and defamatory misinformation that are being purposefully disseminated amongst the public at large with the country and abroad," said Ahmed Akbar Sobhan.