Charge sheet accepted against Dr Yunus, 13 others

A Dhaka court has accepted the charges sheet brought against Grameen Telecom Chairman Dr Muhammad Yunus and 13 others in a case filed for embezzling Tk25 crore from the fund reserved for the workers.

Judge Ash-Shams Jaglul Hossain of Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge's Court on Tuesday accepted the charges.

The court also ordered to transfer the case to Dhaka Special Judge Court-4 for trial and fixed May 2 to hold the hearing.

Earlier on March 3, a Dhaka court granted bail to Dr Yunus and others in the case.

On February 1, ACC deputy director and investigation officer Gulshan Anwar filed the charge-sheet at the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Asaduzzaman.

The anti-graft body on January 29 approved the charge-sheet filed against Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, Grameen Telecom Managing Director Nazmul Islam, directors Ashraful Hasan, Naznin Sultana, Parvin Mahmud, Md Shahjahan, Nurjahan Begum and SM Huzzatul Islam Latifee, Sramik-Karmachari Union President Md Kamruzzaman and General Secretary Firoz Mahmud Hasan, office secretary Qamrul Islam, lawyers Zafrul Hasan Sharif and Md Yusuf Ali and representative Md Mainul Islam.

ACC on May 30, 2023, filed the case with its Dhaka-1 integrated district office.

According to the case documents, a decision was made on the company's 108th board meeting, presided over by Dr Yunus on May 9, 2022, to open a bank account at Gulshan branch of Dhaka Bank Limited. But it was found that the account was opened a day before the decision was even made.

More than Tk26 crore was transferred to the account on different occasions, as per “fake settlement agreements” and decision of the board. But before even distributing the share of the company's profit to the workers, and letting them know, the accused embezzled around Tk25 crore from the fund.