The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed two separate cases against Saima Wazed Putul today.
Multiple ACC sources have confirmed the matter.
In one case, Saima Wazed Putul, daughter of ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, has been accused of abusing power, and using fraud, and forgery to secure the position of Regional Director of the World Health Organization’s South-East Asia Regional Office.
She has also been accused of coercing member banks of the Bangladesh Association of Banks (BAB) into depositing Tk 33.05 crore into the accounts of Shuchona Foundation.
The cases were filed Wednesday at the ACC’s Integrated District Office-1 in Dhaka by ACC Deputy Director Tahasin Munabil Haque.
While one case names Saima Wazed as the sole accused, the other also implicates former BAB Chairman Nazrul Islam Mazumder.
According to the case statement, Putul is accused of fabricating credentials in her application for the WHO Regional Director post in 2023.
The ACC alleges that she falsely claimed to be engaged in teaching and reviewing educational manuals at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), despite having no such involvement.
In her application, Wazed reportedly listed her position at BSMMU saying she was an “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” in her CV.
However, upon investigation, 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.
The second case alleges 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.
The case has been filed under Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 109 of the Penal Code.
The case statement revealed that an enforcement operation was conducted by the ACC headquarters on January 29 against the Shuchona Foundation. During the operation, no physical office of Shuchona Foundation was found.
The investigation found that Putul and Nazrul repeatedly pressured banks to contribute funds to the Foundation. In May 2017, 17 banks were forced to donate Tk 21 crore from their CSR funds.
A total of 20 banks ultimately contributed Tk 33.05 crore.
Further inquiries into the foundation’s records show that no documentation was available regarding how the collected funds were spent.
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.
