The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday filed two cases against Saima Wazed Putul, daughter of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, multiple ACC sources confirmed.

In one case, Saima is accused of abusing power and having recourse to fraud and forgery to secure the position of regional director at the World Health Organization's South-East Asia Regional Office.

She is also accused of coercing member banks of the Bangladesh Association of Banks into depositing Tk 33.05 crore into the accounts of Shuchona Foundation.

ACC Deputy Director Tahasin Munabil Haque filed the cases at the ACC's Integrated District Office-1 in Dhaka.

Saima is the lone accused in one of the cases, while the other also implicates former BAB Chairman Nazrul Islam Mazumder.

WHO APPOINTMENT

According to the statement of the case related to Saima's appointment to WHO's regional office, Saima allegedly fabricated credentials in her application for the post in 2023.

The ACC alleges that she falsely claimed to be engaged in teaching and reviewing educational manuals at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), currently Bangladesh Medical University, despite having no such involvement.

In her application, Wazed reportedly listed her position at the medical university, saying she was an "Honorary Specialist/Expert at BSMMU (2022-Present), providing technical expertise on autism spectrum disorder and mental health, and reviewing manuals for the care and management of developmental disorders".

However, upon investigation, BSMMU authorities confirmed that she never held such a position or participated in any academic or research activities related to manual development.

The ACC has charged her under sections 420, 468, and 471 of the Penal Code, along with section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act of 1947, for allegedly misrepresenting her qualifications to secure the WHO role.

SHUCHONA FOUNDATION

The second case alleges that Saima and Nazrul Islam Mazumder colluded to misuse their power and exert undue influence over member banks of BAB, compelling them to contribute Tk 33.05 crore from their corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds to Shuchona Foundation, where Saima was the chairperson.

In May 2017, 17 banks were forced to donate Tk 21 crore from their CSR funds, according to the charges. A total of 20 banks ultimately contributed the Tk 33.05 crore.

Further inquiries into the foundation's records show that no documentation was available regarding how the collected funds were spent.

The statement of the case, filed under section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and section 109 of the Penal Code, says that no physical office of Shuchona Foundation was found during an enforcement operation conducted by the ACC headquarters on January 29.

Since the organisation had no physical existence, the ACC suspects that the money was embezzled through forged records, which will be thoroughly examined during the investigation.