Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, Secretary General of Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity (BJKS), has made a fortune over the past decade allegedly through illegal means.
His financial activities have come under the Anti-Corruption Commission’s (ACC) scanner as some people lodged complaints against him regarding his vast assets and business dealings.
However, Mohammad Hanif Khokon, president of Bangladesh Road Transport Workers League, has recently filed a case against him for
making derogatory remarks about Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader which is likely to be investigated into by Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI).
Recently, The Bangladesh Post has got the copies of documents on his landed property. Documents show that in 2019, he purchased three plots of land containing 185 decimals in total. According to the deed, the value of the land has been shown at Tk 40,27,000. But the estimated value of that land is much more than Tk 8 crore, according to information provided by locals.
Incidentally, Mozammel was arrested in connection with a case filed with Mirpur police station in the capital on September 5, 2018 on charges of extortion. During that time, his wife Riju Akhter Chowdhury at a press conference claimed that her husband maintains the family with the salary he gets from an online newspaper.
But exactly 11 months later, locals are questioning how he acquired vast land worth crores of taka.
Locals have alleged that Mozammel has illegally amassed wealth within a short period of time. He also introduces himself as a journalist and leader of transport association, they added.
When contacted, Mozammel told Bangladesh Post, “Many people are trying to defame me. They are also trying to make me viral by filing complaints with ACC. I am not worried about that.”
When asked about the land, he replied, “Considering the future value, I have bought a forestland at Hasimpur lying between Chandanish and Bandarban. ‘Shanti Bahini’ currently occupies the land.”
Acknowledging that he owns an auto-rickshaw, he said, “Having an auto-rickshaw does not mean that I am a transport businessman.”
When this correspondent further asked about his personal vehicles, he claimed to have bought three cars with the money he earned from his job but refused to say where he is currently employed.
When connected, general secretary of National Committee to Protect Shipping, Roads, and Railways (NCPSRR) Ashish Kumar Dey told Bangladesh Post, “When Mozammel Haque Chowdhury was arrested, his wife told the media that their earnings were very modest. Upon his release on bail, how did he suddenly get a significant amount of funds for purchasing land. Certainly he misuses of opportunities.”
“I hope legal action will be taken through proper investigation of the allegations leveled against him,” he added.