ACC approves charge sheet against 7 doctors, 4 others

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Tuesday approved a charge sheet against 11 people including seven doctors, three contractors and an official of Azimpur Maternal and Child Health Training Institute for misappropriating Tk1.28 crores in the name procuring medical equipment items.
The charge sheet was approved following a decision taken at a regular meeting held at the ACC headquarters on Tuesday in Dhaka. ACC Secretary Dr Md Anwar Hossain Howlader made this announcement during a press briefing after the meeting saying that the charge sheet will soon be submitted against them to the court.
The anti-graft watchdog found that the accused had misappropriated Tk1.28 crore in the name of purchasing medicines, surgical instruments and pathology items at a price of two to three times higher than the market price. According to the charge sheet, 7 doctors, 3 contractors and officials were made accused. They include Israt Jahan, former caretaker of Azimpur Maternity and Child Health Training Institute and President of the Tender Evaluation Committee, Parvin Haque Chowdhury, former principal of the Family Welfare Inspection Training Institute and member of the Tender Evaluation Committee; Mahfuza Khatun, a former senior member of Matters Coordinator and co-convener of the committee (Training and Research); Chinmoy Kanti Das, member of the evaluation committee; Saiful Islam, a former medical officer and a member of the tender evaluation committee, and Begum Mahfuza Dilara Akhter, Medical Officer and member of the market verification committee.  
The other accused are Maternity Medical Officer and Market Rate Verification Committee Member Nazrina Begum; Administrative Officer and Member Secretary (Market Rate Verification Committee) Md Zahirul Islam.
In addition, the three contractors - the owner of Monarch Establishment, Fatema Noor Islam; owner of Nafisa Business Corner, Sheikh Idris Uddin (Chanchal) and owner of Santona Traders, Nizamur Rahman Chowdhury have been accused in the case.The investigation team found that the accused had made payments of Tk 1.28 crore to the contractor who supplied the medicine, whereas the retail price of the medicine as per rules of the Department of Drug Administration was less.
On December 18 in 2019, the ACC filed four separate cases against 25 people on charges of corruption in the name of purchasing medical equipment items.
In the charge sheet the investigation officer said the accused committed the corruption under the section 5(2) of Corruption Prevention Act-1947 and section409, 420 and 109 of the Penal Code.