17 Biman officials asked to surrender before trial court within three weeks
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The High Court has ordered the 17 officials of the state-owned Biman Bangladesh Airlines to surrender in the trial court concerned within three weeks in a case filed on charge of financial carnage while leasing aircraft from Egypt Air.
The High Court bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Aminul Islam passed the order on Wednesday after a hearing on two bail petitions filed by the accused.
Biman Bangladesh Airlines former chief engineer Gazi Mahmud Iqbal, manager Ataur Rahman, assistant manager Fazlul Haque Basunia, former engineer officer Zahid Hossain, former deputy chief engineer Md Shajhan, former manager Abdul Kader, deputy general manager Azad Rahman, deputy general manager Zia Ahmed and principal engineer Sharif Ruhul Kuddus, among others, who have been asked to surrender.
Lawyer ARM Hasanuzzaman appeared in the court hearing on behalf of the bail petitioners, while lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan and others represented the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) that filed the case.
Earlier on February 6 this year, the ACC filed the case against 23 people including the former Flight Captain (Operation) of the state-owned Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Ishrat Ahmed, for causing alleged financial carnage to the national flag carrier.
ACC Secretary Mahbub Hossain said that the commission inquiry found that the accused in collusion with each other brought about a huge loss of Tk 11.61 billion to Biman through lease corruption.
The commission’s Deputy Director, Jasmin Akter, filed the case against the 23 officials with its Dhaka-1 integrated office, Mahbub said at a press conference on the day.
He narrated that two Egypt aircraft were taken on lease in 2014 for five years, but after operating only for 11 months, the two aircraft went dysfunctional in the period between February and August 2015 due to engine problems.
Another four engines were also leased from Egypt Air to keep the Biman operational, but those ceased to function, he said.
The ACC secretary observed that the Baman and the aviation officials wasted state resources through irregularities in all areas starting with the tender process. The commission initiated an inquiry following a recommendation from the parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism in April 2022.