The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has approved a charge-sheet against Md Sawkat Chowdhure, a Jatiya Party MP from Nilphamari-4, and eight bank officials on charge of swindling over Tk one crore from a commercial bank, reports UNB.

The Commission at its regular meeting on Thursday approved the charge-sheet against them in a graft case, ACC public relations officer Pranab Kumar Bhattacharya told UNB.

The charge-sheet will be submitted before court against MP Md Sawkat Chowdhure, also managing director of Udayan Agro Company Ltd, former first assistant vice president of Bangladesh Commerce Bank Md Hasibul Gani (then manager of its Bangshal branch), suspended additional managing director of the bank Dr Mohammad Asaduzzaman, first executive officer Shirin Nizami, former senior vice president Shafiqul Islam, former vice president Panu Ranjan Das, former first assistant vice president Iftekhar Hossain, former assistant officer Debasihish Kumar Baul, and former executive vice president Aszadur Rahman.

On May 8, 2016, the national anti-graft body filed a case against them for reportedly swindling out around Tk one crore from Bangladesh Commerce Bank.

According to the first information report (FIR), two agro firms —Jamuna Agro Company Limited and Udayan Agro Company Limited in association with the bank officials took a loan of about Tk 83 lakh from Bangladesh Commercial Bank opening 29 letters of credit (LCs) at its Bangshal branch during 2012-2013 to import goods.

Later, the accused in collusion with each other plundered the money. Now the loan amount stands at around Tk 1.12 crore with interest, the FIR said

On May 11, 2016, the ACC also filed another case against Sawkat Chowdhure and the eight bank officials on charge of swindling about Tk 120 crore from the commercial bank.