Photo: Messenger
The officers and workers of the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) are apparently in a state of panic following the publication of news regarding the vast wealth acquired through corruption by former IGP Benazir Ahmed and National Board of Revenue (NBR) official Matiur Rahman.
Meanwhile, on July 3, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) filed a case against Mubarak Hossain, a director of RAJUK, and his wife Sahana Parveen, accusing them of acquiring assets beyond their known income. This has further intensified the fear among RAJUK's staff.
ACC sources reveal that corruption complaints have been filed against over a hundred officers and workers at various levels within RAJUK. The ACC has requested asset information from approximately 20 individuals. Additionally, 12 workers (Class III/IV) of RAJUK have been accused of acquiring illegal wealth worth hundreds of crores of takas through irregularities and corruption. The ACC will hear and accept statements from these officers and workers for proper investigation of the complaints.
RAJUK, a government institution, is responsible for granting permission for building construction within its jurisdiction. It also develops land, sells plots, and engages in flat-selling business. Customers often report harassment during these processes, particularly in building construction.
The institution's jurisdiction includes issuing occupancy certificates, construction and architectural approvals, and regulating building heights. RAJUK also aims to ensure housing for all by allocating plots at low costs. However, a group of dishonest officers and workers has allegedly formed a syndicate, leading to accusations of irregularities and corruption at various levels.
According to a RAJUK source, some high-level officials of the organisation were recently interrogated by government intelligence agencies. These agencies have records of alleged illegal wealth acquisition, which they are verifying through interrogations.
Allegations have also been made against RAJUK Chief Engineer (Implementation) Ujjwal Mallick, who was the Project Director (PD) of the Purbachal New Town Project from its inception.
He was responsible for overseeing all aspects of the project, from land acquisition onwards. He personally acquired a 7.5 katha plot in Purbachal's green zone. Additionally, Purbachal's consultant company, Datax, obtained another 7.5 katha plot under its name. He also owns Plot No. 91 and 93 on Road No. 103 in Purbachal Sector No. 5.
Furthermore, he was accused of running a fraud scheme involving the IDs of 1,440 affected plots in Purbachal. He allegedly collected approximately Tk 10 crore from customers through this scheme. When RAJUK authorities became aware of the situation, they allocated plots to the victims through a lottery system, implemented via MIS. As a result of this incident, Ujjwal Mallick was compelled to refund the customers' money.
According to ACC sources, a team was formed to investigate allegations of undeclared asset acquisition against Ujjwal Mallick. The team interrogated him on May 3 last year, seeking attested photocopies of documents related to lake and earth filling, construction of overhead roads and drains during his work on the Purbachal project, as well as records of lake filling in Sector 5. The ACC reportedly verified these documents and found evidence supporting the charges against him.
Allegations have also been made against several other RAJUK officials, including Rajuk's former chairman Abdur Rahman, engineer M Azizul Haque, former member Lt. Col. M Nurul Haque, former director Abdur Rahman Bhuiyan, office assistant Zafar Sadek, data entry operator Abdul Momin, designer Emdad Ali, building inspector Moniruzzaman, Office Assistant cum Computer Operator Nasir Uddin Chowdhury, Assistant Authorized Officer Aurangzeb Siddiqui Babu, Surveyor Masum Billah, Supervisor Khaled Musharraf Talukdar Rubel, Bench Assistant Bashar Sharif, Lower Assistant Yusuf Miah, Office Assistant MIS Branch Belal Hossain Chowdhury Ripon, Designer Shahidullah Babu, Junior Accounts Assistant Mohammad Hasan, Designer Sheikh Farid, Record keeper Md. Feroze and Humayun Khadem as well.
Most recently, allegations have surfaced against RAJUK Director (Administration) Momin Uddin. Several RAJUK officers and workers told The Daily Messenger on the condition of anonymity that Momin Uddin is misusing his power in transfers and postings. This claim was seemingly corroborated by the promotion of Chief Building Inspector Abu Shams Rakib Uddin Ahmed on February 18 this year.
Abu Shams Rakib Uddin Ahmed had been serving as Chief Building Inspector (Additional Duty) in Zone-4/1 for seven years before being promoted to the same position. Typically, a transfer follows a promotion, but this protocol was reportedly bypassed. To legitimise the promotion, the director of administration allegedly showed Abu Shams Rakib Uddin as serving in Zone-5/2, although personal records indicate he never worked in that zone.
On June 3, an ACC team reportedly interrogated a building inspector regarding allegations of illegal wealth acquisition. Additionally, a written complaint of irregularities involving 200 files has been filed against Habibur Rahman, the records officer of RAJUK's administration branch. The RAJUK administration department has formed a committee to investigate these allegations.
RAJUK Chairman Major General (Retd.) Md. Siddiqur Rahman Sarkar said, “RAJUK's stance against corrupt individuals is clear. If the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) files a chargesheet and the allegations are proven, they will be dismissed according to the rules.”
Messenger/Disha
