No travel ban issued against ex-IGP Benazir anywhere: FM Hasan

Former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed is free to travel anywhere in the world, as no travel ban has been imposed on him, said Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud on Monday.

"Look, there has been no travel ban against him–neither from any court nor from the Anti-Corruption Commission," he said during a media briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, following his return from Antigua and Barbuda and New York, USA.

According to media reports, Benazir, along with his wife and daughters, departed Dhaka on a Singapore Airlines flight on the night of May 4.

The foreign minister said it remains to be seen whether the former police chief appears before the ACC on June 6.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) said they summoned Benazir for questioning over allegations of accumulating illegal wealth on June 6.

Additionally, the commission has summoned his wife and daughters for questioning on June 9.

On April 23, the ACC decided to investigate the allegations against Benazir and his family.

Subsequently, the anti-corruption watchdog requested various financial institutions, including the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), to provide transaction records concerning Benazir and his family members.

On May 23, a Dhaka court first ordered the confiscation of 345 bigha of land belonging to Benazir and his family members, and 33 bank accounts in their names in various public and private banks.

Following this, last Sunday the court also ordered the seizure of several more immovable properties valued in crores and the freezing of additional movable assets in 119 documents.