Dhaka: The police have issued advice to passengers, boat and transport drivers and owners for safe and smooth travel during the upcoming holy Eid-ul-Fitr.

A press release signed by Bangladesh Police AIG (Media and PR) Enamul Haque Sagar on Thursday (March 20) gave various advice.

Request to passengers:

Plan your Eid travel with sufficient time. Keep the safety of yourself and your family members in mind while traveling. Do not urge the driver to drive at high speed. Avoid risking your life by becoming an additional passenger on the roof of a bus or traveling in trucks, pickups and other goods-carrying vehicles.

Use zebra crossings or foot overbridges when crossing the road. Where there are no zebra crossings or foot overbridges, cross the road safely by watching the movement of vehicles. Seek police assistance if necessary. Do not drive recklessly. Refrain from accepting food or drinks from strangers.

Request to bus owners:

Do not allow incompetent, amateur, tired or sick drivers to drive passenger buses and cars. Instruct the driver to drive according to the rules and not to do risky overtaking. Unfit cars cannot be put on the road.

Do not drive at overspeed, do not do risky overtaking. Do not drive when tired, exhausted or sick. Always carry the necessary documents of the car including the driving license. Do not carry extra passengers on the bus. Follow the instructions of the police if necessary when traveling on regional or highways.

Request to passengers of launches/steamers/speedboats:

Do not take on extra passengers on the boat at the risk of your life. Do not travel on the roof of the boat as a passenger. Refrain from traveling on the boat at the risk of your life in adverse weather conditions. If there is a storm on the route, stay in your place instead of running around. Wear a life jacket when traveling on a speedboat.

Operate the boat by a master and driver of the prescribed number and grade. Stop boating in inclement weather. Make arrangements to temporarily close both sides of the master bridge of the boat to prevent free movement of passengers. Keep sufficient buoys on the launch.

Leave the port with the boat knowing the weather forecast. Refrain from transporting goods on the deck where passengers sit. Keep an adequate number of buoys/life jackets in the boat. If there is a risk of a storm on the route, move the boat to a safe place or keep it on the shore. Keep a mobile phone and radio in the boat and listen to regular weather bulletins. Use weather-related apps if necessary. Refrain from operating the boat without valid documents. Ensure the correctness of all fire pumps and fire-fighting equipment. Keep buoys and life jackets with 100-150 feet long ropes in the boat to identify the accident-hit boat.

Request to train passengers:

Refrain from risky travel on the roof, buffer, steps and engine of the train. Be careful about throwing stones while traveling by train. Keep your belongings at your own risk while traveling by train. Refrain from traveling by train without a ticket.

If necessary, contact the Police Headquarters Control Room at 01320001300, 01320001299, Highway Police Headquarters at 01320182598, Railway Police Headquarters at 01320177598, Naval Police Headquarters at 01320169598, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) at 01777720029 and the District Superintendent of Police and Officers-in-Charge (OC) of the police station, the notification said. 

Dhaka: The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed two separate cases against Sheikh Hasina's daughter Saima Wazed Putul for fraudulently obtaining a job at the World Health Organization and receiving Tk. 330 crore in the name of Shuchana Foundation.

This information was revealed by ACC sources on Thursday (March 20).

The case statement said that Saima Wazed Putul is accused of embezzling funds from various government projects and earning hundreds of crores of taka abroad, in clear violation of the rules, policies and ethical standards of the World Health Organization with the connivance of her mother Sheikh Hasina.

Initial investigations have shown that Saima Wazed Putul and those concerned are trying to transfer, relocate or misappropriate the organization's movable assets through Shuchana Foundation. If the assets are transferred, relocated or misappropriated before the investigation is completed, it will be difficult to recover the money later. The information found so far in the investigation regarding movable assets related to Putul's interests must be blocked in accordance with the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

Dhaka: The perpetrator of rape under the pretext of marriage can be sentenced to a maximum of 7 years in prison.

The Women and Child Abuse Amendment Act was passed by the Advisory Council on Thursday (March 20) with such a provision. Press Secretary to the Chief Adviser Shafiqul Alam gave this information at a briefing at the Foreign Service Academy in the capital.

The Press Secretary to the Chief Adviser said that the maximum punishment for rape under the pretext of marriage has been increased to 7 years. It will remain within the case of women and child abuse. However, it has been kept separately in the same law.

Informing about other decisions taken by the Advisory Council, the Press Secretary said that from now on, government work will be 100% tendered to reduce corruption and transparency in government work tenders. Until now, 60 percent of work was done through tenders.

Also, mentioning that an executive order has declared a holiday in three hill districts on Chaitra Sankranti, Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam said that indigenous people of other districts or plains will also get this holiday.

Dhaka: Finally, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has got hold of the biggest hundi activity in the country. After conducting an investigation, the agency's Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) has received information that thousands of crores of taka were being smuggled abroad from the country through hundi under the guise of perfume business.

According to the news published in the newspaper, the name of the company accused in the hundi business is Al Haramain Perfumes. The owner of the company is Sylhet businessman Mohammad Mahtabur Rahman Nasir. The businessman, a US citizen, is now living in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under a golden visa.

According to the news published by the NBR's Central Intelligence Cell, Mahtabur Rahman Nasir's business network is currently spread across 86 countries of the world. Apart from Bangladesh, Al Haramain Perfumes has showrooms in the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United States and the United Kingdom. His visible business in other countries is mainly import-export. However, the investigation found that Mahtabur Rahman Nasir's entire business network is involved in hundi activities. His main business is mainly to launder money from one country to another under the guise of perfume or import-export business.

A team of CIC recently went to the UAE to investigate the wealth and money laundering information of this businessman. They collected information on the wealth and money laundering of Mahtabur Rahman in different countries of the world. In addition, a letter has been sent to the government of the concerned country asking for information on the other countries where he has assets. The CIC has also investigated the wealth of Mahtabur Rahman in the country. As part of this process, a two-phase search was conducted at Mahtabur Rahman's house in Sylhet. According to CIC sources, 104 property documents and other documents were seized from that house.

Earlier, on January 22, the CIC froze (blocked) the bank accounts of Mahtabur Rahman Nasir and his family members. The list includes the names of Mahtabur Rahman's brother Mohammad Oliur Rahman, son Mohammad Emadur Rahman, nephews Mohammad Ashfaqur Rahman and Mohammad Ehsanur Rahman, and Al Haramain Group Executive Director Syed Sabbir Ahmed. In addition to bank accounts, their income tax records have been reviewed and detailed information has been sought from the Land Sub-Registry Office. An officer of the NBR's Central Intelligence Cell involved in the investigation said, "Al Haramain Perfumes showrooms in various countries around the world, including Bangladesh, are mainly used for hundi money transactions. If someone deposits money at the Bashundhara City showroom in Dhaka, that money is paid in dirhams at the City Center in Dubai. No small amount of money is transacted at these showrooms. Rather, hundreds of crores of taka are received from big businessmen or money launderers. In this case, the showrooms only keep accounts in a special ledger.’

He further said, ‘We have received information that in addition to the hundi business, Mahtabur Rahman also has an extensive network of gold smuggling. We have seen around the showrooms of Al Haramain Perfumes in Dhaka and Dubai that no customer came to buy perfume there even in 3-4 hours.’

In addition to the NBR’s Central Intelligence Cell (CIC), various intelligence agencies and regulatory authorities, including Bangladesh Bank, Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), are investigating Mahtabur Rahman Nasir on various allegations, including operating a vast hundi network and aiding influential people in money laundering. As part of this process, the Bangladesh Bank dissolved the board of NRB Bank PLC on March 12 due to lack of good governance and evidence of crimes. Mahtabur Rahman Nasir had been the chairman of the bank for more than nine years since 2016.

When asked about this, CIC Director General Ahsan Habib said, "75 percent of our investigation into Mahtabur Rahman Nasir has been completed. The documents that have been seized are being reviewed. And the work of verifying the authenticity of the information we have received is also underway. We can comment on this only after the investigation report is finalized."

Although the company has been operating in Bangladesh for almost a decade, all its showrooms are still making losses, according to those concerned. Parimal Chandra Dhar, who has been the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Al Haramain Group Bangladesh since 2017, said, "Despite having so many showrooms, we have never been able to make a profit in Bangladesh. Here, 150 percent VAT is paid on perfume. It is not possible to make a profit with so much VAT and tax. The business that existed before has also ended in the last few months. Sales have decreased a lot compared to before."

When asked about the group's hundi activities, Parimal Chandra Dhar said, "Let the NBR prove its claim."