Staff correspondent
Bangladesh Nationalist Party on Sunday denied there was any case pending in the United States against Arafat Rahman, youngest son of the party chief, Khaleda Zia, for allegedly taking kickbacks from Siemens, a German telecommunications giant.
‘We have seen reports in newspapers naming Koko in the Siemens bribes case. But, according to the available documents of the case, the plaintiff did not say that Koko had taken bribes,’ BNP secretary general Khandaker Delwar Hossain said at a press briefing at the party chief’s Gulshan office.
Before Delwar made the statement, Khaleda had held a meeting with Arafat’s lawyers, including TH Khan and Rafiqul Islam Mia.
The United States moved Friday to seize Singapore-based funds allegedly linked to a wide-ranging conspiracy to bribe Bangladesh officials over projects involving German and Chinese firms, according to an Agence France-Presse dispatch datelined Washington.
The forfeiture action was filed on Thursday in a US district court in Washington against funds worth three million dollars in Singapore held by multiple account holders, the assistant attorney general, Matthew Friedrich, said.
Delwar refuted the charge of $ 3 million bribery against Arafat saying, ‘such motivated story is designed to undermine Khaleda Zia and BNP’.
He said if they [German and Chinese firms] might have bribed any Bangladeshi citizen, ‘question arises as to who paid it and when.’
‘If the allegation made in the case is true, they started paying [the kickbacks] in May 2001, when BNP was not in power,’ Delwar said adding, ‘Awami League was in power at that time.’
He claimed that the plaintiff did not make Arafat defendant in the case. ‘According to the available documents, Siemens Bangladesh Limited is the defendant in the case.’
He dubbed the charges made against Arafat concocted and baseless. ‘They used Arafat’s name to malign Khaleda Zia and BNP.’
Arafat’s counsel TH Khan and Rafiqul Islam Mia echoed Delwar. ‘There is no case pending against Arafat,’ TH Khan said.
Rafiq said, ‘He [Arafat] is not a party to it [Siemens bribe case]’.
Delwar said lawyers would defend Arafat if he was made an accused in the case.
He accused US-based companies of spreading corruption in countries like Bangladesh. They [US] give sermons against corruption in other countries. But they, in a way, are spreading corruption by bribing people in other countries.’
Lawyers Ahmed Azam Khan, Nasir Uddin Asim, Sanaullah Mia, Masud Ahmed Talukdar, BNP leaders Afzal H Khan and Shamsur Rahman Shimul Biswas and head of the party chief’s press wing Maruf Kamal Khan Sohel were present at the briefing.
Courtesy: newagebd.com
