No Concrete Action Yet Taken Against Bangladeshis Named in Panama Papers

 
A striking exposure of illegal funds stashed abroad was leaked out by Panama Papers in 2016 which sparked tremors throughout the globe. Panama Papers disclosed to the whole world names and identities of powerful tycoons belonging to several countries whose bank accounts in overseas locations spilled over with money acquired through unauthorized channels.

A scrutiny by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) claimed that Bangladeshi politicians and businessmen were also named in the massive leakage of documents from the secret files of Mossack Fonseca, a law firm based in tax haven Panama.

ICIJ also published the names of Bangladeshis and their addresses on its website a number of times but no action by the immediate past Bangladesh government was taken to ascertain precise details about the tax dodgers and money launderers who amassed enormous wealth in foreign countries by devastating banks, stock markets and financial firms in Bangladesh. Nine years have passed since the disclosure of the Panama Papers and a staggering regime change also hit the streets in Bangladesh on 5 August 2024. The Asian Age published a broad range of reports and write-ups about scams, illegal money transfer and frauds in banks and financial institutions one after another while banned outfit Awami League was in power.

Around 32 Bangladeshi nationals and a few Bangladeshi business conglomerates were named in an unprecedented leakage of 11.5 million tax documents exposing their secret offshore transactions and monetary deposits during 2016.

They are A.S.M. Mohiuddin Monem, Aziz Khan, AFM Rahamatul Bari, Asma Monem, Azmat Moyeen, Bangla TRAC Limited, BBTL, Captain M.A. Jaul, F.M. Zubaidul Haque & Salma Haque, Jafer Ummeed Khan, Kazi Raihan Zafar, Khawza Sahadat Ullah, Mahtabuddin Chowdhury, Mirza M. Eyahia, Mohammad Aminul Haque, Mohammad Jahidul Islam, Mohammad Shahed Masud, Mohammed Faisal Karim Khan, Nazrul Islam, Nazim Asadul Haque, Nilufer Zafarullah, Salma Haque, Syed Serajul Huq, Syeda Samina Mirza, Tarique Ekramul Haque, Ummeh Rubana, Zafarullah Kazi, Zulfiqur Hyder etcetera.

The Panama Papers are an unusual leakage of 11.5 million files from the database of the world's fourth biggest offshore law firm Mossack Fonseca which hit news headlines in 2016. The then Bangladesh government took no remarkable measures to find out further information about the Bangladeshi oligarchs whose names were exposed by Panama Papers. It may be recalled that the High Court ordered the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), Crime Investigation Department (CID) and Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) on 30 January 2022 to closely check out the financial malfeasance furnished in Panama Papers leaked out documents but what happened afterwards was not reported by any of the concerned institutions or investigators.

Under these circumstances questions and doubts have already glared up for what reasons Bangladesh Bank and Finance Ministry for last one year did not pronounce a single word about Panama Papers and nothing has been yet done about the names of Bangladeshis which emerged through that leakage. Money laundering done by means of plundering borrowed funds from banks paralyzed the banking sector in Bangladesh during last 15 years but why is the current interim government quiet on these rackets leaked out from Panama Papers-it is an inevitable interrogative sign without doubts.

Relevant sources have stated that the concealed data on unlawfully achieved mammoth monetary assets was obtained from an anonymous source by German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, which shared these classified facts and figures with the ICIJ.

The ICIJ then shared this information with a large network of international partners, including the Guardian and BBC. Most of the money launderers work through offshore bank accounts to facilitate illegal money transfer.

Offshore bank accounts and other financial dealings in another country can be used to evade regulatory oversight or to skip tax obligations. Often companies or individuals use shell companies, initially incorporated without significant assets or operations, to disguise ownership or other information about the funds involved.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and other regulatory agencies publish assessments identifying weaknesses in enforcement of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing efforts of specific countries and territories. Financial and legal professionals undergo training on how to spot potential regulatory breaches since in some cases lawyers and bankers are unaware they are dealing with outlawed transactions. The European Union (EU) has stepped up efforts to crack down on tax evasion by multinational corporations and individuals.

Professor Abu Ahmed, Economics Department in Dhaka University said "Corruption in the banking sector and irregularities in financial administration which occurred immensely during the overthrown regime should be thoroughly examined. Actions against financial perpetrators should be carried out with an iron hand."

Professor Anu Muhammad of Jahangirnagar University said "People had a lot of expectations from the interim government but rule of law and good governance in banks and financial systems are still not in a very satisfactory shape."

Professor Dr. Mainul Ahsan of Economics Department, University of Chittagong said "Fraudsters and racketeers who devastated banks during the ousted government's ruling period need to be subjected to exemplary punishment. Their assets must be seized and strong steps are required to recover siphoned off funds."