Meet minister in the Sheikh Hasina’s government with 480+ properties globally

Saifuzzaman Chowdhury (File picture from Facebook)

Months after the ouster of Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina, the interim govt in cost of the nation has made her extradition from India a high precedence. But her return is not the solely concern; Dhaka can be seeking to recuperate what it says is billions of {dollars} that the ousted chief’s associates siphoned out of the nation throughout the time she was in workplace.
In a report on Feb 28, Financial Times of London targeted on acquisitions of 1 such particular person, former Bangladesh land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, saying it amounted to an “extraordinary real estate empire built up, for the most part, while he served as an MP in the govt of Sheikh Hasina”.
FT has recognized 482 properties acquired by Chowdury or his shut household at a price of at the very least $295mn between 1992 and 2024, making him one among the high targets of anti-corruption investigations launched beneath Nobel Peace laureate Mohd Yunus, the head of the interim govt. The interval it’s in spans the 15 years from 2009 to 2024, when Sheikh Hasina loved an uninterrupted run as Bangladesh PM in her second stint in workplace.

Assets scattered throughout
The areas of Chowdhury’s properties stretch from Dubai’s Burj Khalifa district and the synthetic Palm Jumeirah archipelago to flats in London’s commuter cities. The surge in Chowdhury’s property acquisitions got here after he was appointed land minister in 2019, FT mentioned.
Before he grew to become Sheikh Hasina’s land minister, Chowdhury served as an MP of her occasion for over 5 years. In 2023, he declared to Bangladesh parliament belongings value $2.3mn. His final declared revenue tax return, for 2017, states he had no overseas revenue in any respect. FT says different Bangladeshi elites being focused by the interim govt are estimated to have acquired property value $578mn in international locations starting from Singapore to Canada.
Loyal household
Chowdhury’s father Akhtaruzzaman was an Awami League politician and “close confidant” of Sheikh Hasina, FT mentioned. He was a member of the founding board of administrators of United Commercial Bank, established in 1983. Akhtaruzzaman was accused of being concerned in instances of violence associated to UCB – together with the homicide of its founding chairman in 1993 – that FT mentioned the “interim govt sees as precedent for the forcible takeover of other banks in the final years of Sheikh Hasina’s rule”.
Cronies and items
A report commissioned by Mohd Yunus claimed that Bangladesh misplaced “$16bn annually to money laundering under Sheikh Hasina’s rule from 2009 to 2024”.
FT quoted Yale professor Mushfiq Mobarak as saying that politicians related with Sheikh Hasina misused the govt to forcibly permit their cronies to take management of enormous industrial banks after which siphon off “billions of dollars through ‘loans’ that would never be repaid”.
These cronies obliged the politicians with items of actual property overseas.
Others beneath scrutiny, too
Dhaka has engaged worldwide advisor majors Deloitte, EY and KPMG to carry out an asset high quality evaluate of Bangladesh’s banks and arrange joint investigative groups to “trace the assets of 10 leading families, as well as Sheikh Hasina’s”. While the interim govt hasn’t particularly named anyone, FT mentioned Bashundhara Group chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan and S Alam Group chairman Saiful Alam are amongst those that have been talked about by govt officers.
FT additionally quoted Yunus as saying there’s “significant money” in Canada and that Bangladeshi elites have additionally purchased belongings in Dubai, from the place it will likely be robust to make any restoration.