Daily Amader Somoy editor Naimul Islam Khan has described a fraud case against him as a conspiracy to separate him from the newspaper.
After the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Court summoned Naimul on charges of fraud on Tuesday, he told bdnews24.com, "This case is part of a plot to take away Amader Somoy from me."
Magistrate Shahadat Hossain issued the order after hearing the statement of plaintiff BNS Group chairman M N H Bulu. The case was filed earlier in the day.
According to case details, the daily faced serious economic crisis at one point of its publication. The accused, via a third person, met with the plaintiff at his business headquarters on the 18th floor of Ocean Tower at Banani and asked him to buy shares of the newspaper.
The plaintiff believed him and agreed to buy the shares and paid the accused a total of Tk 23.5 million via Social Investment Bank, Pubali Bank, United Commercial Bank and Mercantile Bank through cheques over the last one year.
However, the accused secretly handed over the shares to another person even though he took the payments from the plaintiff.
The daily's editor promised to return the money along with interest when the BNS Group chief met him personally.
According to the plaintiff, he trusted the accused and took no legal action. But the accused did not honour his word, and finally the plaintiff sent him a legal notice on Mar 16.
Naimul accepted the notice on Mar 21.
Bulu again confronted him and was told that the money shall be returned along with interest.
However, the accused editor failed to keep his word again and started dillydallying. Finally on May 25, Naimul said that he would not pay back.
There are two witnesses with the plaintiff in the case.
BCB Red opener Imrul Kayes and BCB Green paceman Shahadat Hossain starred for their respective sides on day two of the four-day practice match on Tuesday.
Kayes, who usually plays second-fiddle to Tamim Iqbal for the Tigers, displayed his trademark qualities in making 85 runs in his three-hour stay at the crease at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
The left-hander's 133-ball vigil contained 14 fours and a six to help BCB Red reach 215 for seven in reply to their opponents 281.
Tamim (1) was not the only senior batsman to have a bad day at the office. New Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim (20), Mohammad Ashraful (16), Mahmudullah (21) all failed to convert their starts into big runs.
Shahadat was the pick of the BCB Green bowlers as he finished with 3-52 in nine overs.
Resuming on 254-6, BCB Green's last four wickets added 27 runs.
All-rounder Naeem Islam, who put on 126 runs for the sixth-wicket with Mominul Islam (72) on Monday, was snapped up by pacer Shafiul Islam without adding to his overnight score of 95 with the total still on 254 runs.
Then left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak, who almost had a hat-trick, ended the innings taking the last three wickets.
Shafiul finished with three for 42 while Razzak took 3-10 in only 2.1 overs.
Four policemen including a sub-inspector (SI) of Ashulia Police Station have been withdrawn on charges of their alleged involvement in dealing in cannabis.
Dhaka district superintendent of police (SP) Mizanur Rahman told bdnews24.com on Tuesday SI Shahadat Hossain, constables Habibur Rahman, Sarwar Hossain and Mizanur Rahman allegedly seized a covered van full of the drug and sold the haul.
"They have been withdrawn as evidence has been found against them in primary investigation," he added.
A two-member committee headed by additional SP Sheikh Rafiqul Islam was formed to investigate the incident and submit findings within a week.
More than one official of the station, seeking anonymity, told bdnews24.com that acting on a tip-off, the four policemen had seized 110 kilograms ganja and arrested two drug peddlers in front of Savar Filling Station around 11pm on Sep 12.
They freed the peddlers and the van on the same night in return for a hefty bribe, but did not return the ganja but sold those to another peddler the next day.
A case was filed on Sept 24 after five kilograms of that haul was recovered and two drug peddlers were arrested. During interrogation, the peddlers claimed they had purchased the drugs from the policemen.
President Zillur Rahman has returned to his official residence Bangabhaban after receiving treatment at the Dhaka Combined Military Hospital (CMH).
An official statement on Tuesday said before departing from the CMH, the physicians concerned of the hospital said the present health condition of president Zillur is good.
He was admitted to the CMH on Sep 23 evening following digestive complications.
On Sep 11, the 82-year-old president had gone to Singapore for regular medical check-up at Mount Elizabeth Hospital and returned on Sep 15.
Zillur Rahman took oath as the 19th president of the country on Feb 12, 2009.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved a new set of book-building rules for listing of shares.
The amended rules were approved at the Commission's meeting on Tuesday evening, SEC spokesperson and executive director Saifur Rahman told bdnews24.com.
Since the catastrophic Dec-Jan collapse in the capital market, the book-building process has been a subject of intense debate. The finance minister later ordered the rules be suspended and amended.
On Aug 17, the Commission approved a draft set of amended rules.
As per the amended rules, at least 20 companies from the six categories must take part in the bidding, with at least three from each category. They must also mention how many shares each of them want to purchase.
Besides, no single company can purchase more than 5 percent of the shares, it says. However, there are no valuation caps, like PE ratio and NAV, for the issue price.
Also, to enter the bidding, a company must be approved by an international approval agency.
Institutional investors have been allowed a 40 percent quota under the new norms.
Asset management companies will now on be able to participate in the book-building process. However, any sponsor or director of such an institution will not be able to take part in the bidding.
Share lock-in period has been extended from 15 days to four months.
The two stock exchanges will function as observers in the book-building process.
The SEC will be able to audit, review and cancel any book-building process.
Tuesday's meeting also finalised a policy on placement which will be sent for notification, and a draft of rights issue rules, which will be sent for public opinion survey.
Amid anxiety over the lingering transit issue, first commercial consignment from India with transshipment cargo destined for Tripura has entered Bangladesh.
The consignment that goes to Akhaura from Ashuganj river port offers an opportunity to earn revenue.
Four trucks with 100 tonnes of galvanised steel started from Ashuganj, a transshipment point, to Akhaura on Tuesday evening, and it would cross the border on Wednesday, Sheikh Mahfuz Hamid, managing director of Gulf Orient, told the bdnews24.com.
Gulf Orient has been assigned the job of transporting goods from Kolkata to Akhaura. The same company is also responsible for transporting over-dimensional cargoes for 726 megawatt Palatana power plant in Tripura.
The vessel, Homibaba, carrying 300 tonnes of steel anchored at Ashuganj port on Sep 1, but due to customs formalities, the shipment of the first consignment got delayed, according to Mahfuz.
The rest of 200 tonnes would be shipped this week, he added.
"Another two ships carrying galvanised steel and steel ingots have also entered Bangladesh," Mahfuz said.
FETCHING REVENUE
Bangladesh would be earning $50 a tonne for transshipment of the products, the Gulf Orient MD said.
"If the transshipped products are loaded or unloaded manually, the revenue will be $37, but if small cranes are used, the rate is $50, while in case of big cranes, it will be $72," he explained.
The amount is earned under different heads, including vessel and truck fares, BIWTA loading charge, river toll or berthing charge, C&F commission and labour charge.
"All the revenue will be in foreign currency and the government will collect 8.5 per cent income tax and VAT on the total amount," Mahfuz said.
FUTURE BOOKINGS
Gulf Orient alone would be transshipping some 5,000 tonnes of HR coil in October and 16,000 tonnes of bitumen by December, he said.
"In October, $3,50,000 can be earned by providing the service."
There are other operators also allowed to carry transit and transshipped goods.
"There are raw materials to be used in the north-eastern states of India and it is expected that more volume of cargoes will be transshipped if it becomes popular," he hoped.
India has been demanding since '80s to transship goods through Ashuganj river port from Kolkata to Tripura, and the port became the second transshipment point in May last year.
Bangladesh during the visit of Indian premier Manmohan Singh early September reportedly refused to sign transit-related exchange of letter as the two countries failed to strike Teesta water deal.
However, the joint communiqué issued on Sep 7 asked the authorities concerned to expedite the process to complete the transit formalities.
The government imposed transit and transshipment fee at a rate of Tk 10,000 per container and Tk 1,000 per tonne on bulk cargo in 2010-11 budget, but it was withdrawn later.
The well-funded International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh that enjoys immunity from local taxes and duties has made the decision citing a 'cost containment' plan.
Bangladesh owns and largely funds the institute that gets over Tk 50 million in each fiscal year from the government for patients care. It treats more than 100,000 patients a year at its Mohakhali hospital filled with hundreds of brightly coloured diarrhoea cots with holes in the middle opening to clear buckets beneath.
The medical director of the hospital Dr Mark Pietroni in a Sept 6 letter to all hospital staff said the decision would be 'effective from Sep 11 till further notice.'
'no fish, chicken, mutton and egg will be given in the patient and staff diet unless prescribed by a doctor as part of a therapeutic diet for the patient.'
however, could not gather immediately why the institute braced for cost-cutting measures despite increasing funding from donors and the Bangladesh government.
The sudden penny-pinching has caused deep resentment among ICDDR, B's scientists and employees. Unnamed staff have circulated bulletins among the ICDDR, B staff, a copy of which is also with bdnews24.com.
The bulletin suggests prohibitive salaries for a few of its foreign officials and corruption in the last three years put the centre into a financial tailspin.
A government investigation is underway on the alleged misuse of Tk 1 billion funds allocated for the vertical expansion of the centre's three-storey Mohakhali.
In an email response, Dr Pietroni, however, did not make it clear to whether and why they stopped serving meat, poultry and eggs in the diet.
He only said the patients were given the diet that "their doctors feel is best for them."
Dietician with the ICDDR, B hospital Anowara Begum told that they got a notice from the hospital authorities to stop serving fish, chickens, mutton and eggs.
"We used to serve any of those items along with vegetables, daal (lentil) and rice," she said, adding that the decision might be revised. "Senior scientists (at the centre) are trying to convince hospital administrators to revise the decision," she said.
A patient, Kamrul Hassan, 26, On Monday that he was given 'vegetables, daal and bhat (rice)' for lunch.
A senior nutritionist in Bangladesh, Akhtarun Nahar said she never heard of such decision at any hospital in her lifetime. "For the first time I heard it from you," the principal nutrition officer of BIRDEM told when asked.
She said unless a few specific cases like liver cirrhosis and kidney diseases put them on a diet, hospital patients should be served 'improved' diet.
"Even a mother of a breastfed child needs protein-rich food so that she can continue breastfeeding her ailing child.
"I cannot agree with their (ICDDR, B's) decision," she said, adding if they suffer from fund crunch 'they could at least serve eggs for the patients.'
"Its (eggs) cheaper protein," she said.
Health Rights Movement's president Prof Rashid-e-Mahbub termed the ICDDR, B measure 'inhumane'.
"It's a research institute. Patients are their study subjects. It's their (patients) right to get proper services and diet," he said.
The hospital runs a diarrhoeal diseases surveillance for which they draw blood and urine samples from patients.
Health secretary Mohammad Humayun Kabir would not comment on issue since it involves the ICDDR, B's management.
But the secretary, who is also a member of the centre's board of trustees, said he would discuss it in the next board meeting.
The meeting will be held in mid-November. The 16-strong board meets twice a year and endorses the centre's activities.
The only centre of its kind in developing countries, the ICDDR, B was set up through an ordinance in 1978 that also offers a wide range of privileges for its foreign employees including exemption from income tax and privilege of duty-free import of all personal and household items.
The centre is legally mandated to move biological materials in and out of the country.
The BNP has announced its new protest programme comprising three road marches and rallies at divisional headquarters.
BNP chief Khaleda Zia made the announcement at a rally in front of the party's Naya Paltan headquarters on Tuesday.
The first road march will set off on Oct 10 followed by a rally in Sylhet the day next.
The second march will be towards Rajshahi on Oct 18 with a rally in Bogra that day. This will be followed by another rally in Rajshahi city the following day.
The third road march will start on Oct 25 for Chittagong. The same day, the main opposition will hold a rally in Feni and another one in Chittagong the next day.
Speaking at the rally, the BNP chief launched a scathing attack on the government.
She said the ruling Awami League's student and youth wings —Chhatra League and Juba League — have unleashed a reign of terror in the country.
"The people are fed up with the goons of Chhatra League and Juba League," she said.
On the price rise, she said high prices had made the life of the people miserable.
The leader of the opposition then went on to compare the current prices of essential items to those during her tenure.
"The government is persistently raising the prices of items."
The rally started around 2.30pm and Khaleda began her speech soon after 5pm on Tuesday.
She said that the government had completely politicised the judiciary and alleged that police were being used for partisan interests.
"Is it the party police or that of the nation?"
Khaleda said BNP processions were not even allowed on streets during the general strikes. But the government party brings out its own processions with law enforcers as escort, she said.
Talking of the Awami League, Khaleda said the party had to be escorted out into the streets although the administration is in their favour. "They (the government) have politicised the entire government machinery."
"Shame on you! Shame on you!"
"There have been no new factories and no new investment," Khaleda said. "Consequently unemployment is also rising."
"We had given special priority to the garment industry and brought it forward," she went on, "but during the tenure of the Awami League, a number of factories have closed down instead.
"Roads to India have been opened so that the country gets full access to our markets… And the government claims that the economy is doing well."
"Then why is the finance minister knocking on the doors of the World Bank and the IMF begging for expensive loans?"
She accused the Rapid Action Battalion of secret killing, and urged foreign countries not to train RAB and police for their human rights violation.
"I demand foreign nations refuse providing training to RAB and this police," she said.
The BNP chairperson said the Awami League government had abolished the caretaker government system "because they know very well that they will not be able to get re-elected".
They have gone ahead with their move although the court had ruled that the next two elections could be held under caretakers.
"Was it not this Awami League that had campaigned hard for this system? Was it not this Awami League that even vandalised on the streets demanding a caretaker system to oversee elections?"
They call us opposed to liberation because of our alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami. "But didn't the ruling party have Jamaat by its side to strengthen its position? But they now berate us for being 'opposed' to our liberation and sovereignty."
"This government is so scared of the people that they won't even allow us to hold this rally at the Paltan Ground. The government had barricaded roads to stop buses. Trains have been blocked from carrying our supporters to this venue.
"But once the people rise, they cannot be stopped."
Referring to Hasina's current alliance with the deposed military dictator Hussein Mohammad Ershad, Khaleda said, "You had intended to keep Ershad in power for longer. But when the people rose up, you deserted him and stood by our side with the people. But now you are back together."
Khaleda Zia also noted that whenever the Awami League came to power, there was a crash in the stock market. She alleged that certain quarters had fooled the people and there was a government hand in 'looting the life-long savings of 3.3 million people'.