ACC files case against 5 officials and employees of Faridpur Sadar Sub-Registrar Office

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against five officials and employees of the Faridpur Sadar Sub-Registrar Office on charges of bribery and abuse of power for a long time.

Assistant Inspector of the ACC's Faridpur District Integrated Office Md. Shamim Hossain confirmed the matter on Monday (February 02) morning.

Earlier on Sunday (February 01), ACC Assistant Director Sardar Abul Basar filed the case as the plaintiff at the ACC Integrated District Office in Faridpur.

According to the case statement and attached documents, the accused are - Former Sub-Registrar of Faridpur Sadar Sub-Registrar Office Md. Yusuf Ali Mia (60), Comparator Md. Mehedi Hasan (37), Copyist Monowar Hossain (40), Reader Md. Zahid Sheikh (41) and Md. Jihad Sheikh (33).

The complaint states that the accused, in collusion with each other, used to hold hostage ordinary people who came to the sub-register office for services and collect additional money in the name of document registration. There are also allegations of unreasonable delay in receiving documents if they did not pay a bribe beyond the prescribed government fee, harassment on various pretexts and sometimes returning the documents.

The ACC investigation revealed that during the relevant period (2017-2018), the accused illegally collected a huge amount of money, which is a clear violation of the Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act. The complaint states that through these activities, they abused their power while holding public office.

Earlier, in view of the complaint, the Faridpur Integrated District Office investigated the matter on the instructions of the ACC Head Office. After reviewing the evidence and documents obtained at the end of the investigation, the Anti-Corruption Commission approved the filing of a case. Accordingly, the case was registered under the relevant sections of the Penal Code of 1879 and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947.

Ratan Kumar Das, deputy director of the ACC's integrated district office in Faridpur, said, "In addition to taking the case to the court for trial, preparations are underway to seize necessary documents and record testimony. If the allegations are proven in the investigation, strict legal action will be taken against the accused."

In this incident, along with relief among service seekers at the Faridpur Sadar Sub-Registrar Office, there has been a strong demand for more effective action against corruption in government offices.