Hasina charged in Niko graft probe
Bangladesh's military-backed interim government formally charged former prime
minister Sheikh Hasina with corruption in a case involving Canadian explorer
Niko Resources, officials said today.
On Monday, authorities brought similar charges against another prime minister,
Begum Khaleda Zia, for her dealings with the Canadian company during her
term in office.
"Both the former prime ministers along with their cohorts will be tried
separately," an Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) official told Reuters.
The anti-corruption body said Hasina's government allowed Niko to operate in
the country without transparent deeds, and caused losses worth millions of
dollars.
It said Khaleda's subsequent government did not address the issue of lack of
transparency in the deal and also failed to recover millions of dollars in
compensation for environmental damage caused by two blow outs at the Chattak
gas field in 2005.
Niko representatives in Dhaka were not immediately available for comment.
In December a company official told Reuters that the company had not operated
unethically in Bangladesh. The official also said the Niko had not been
contacted by the Bangladesh authorities after the charges were laid.
The trials will start soon.
Hasina and Khaleda have been detained since last year in a campaign launched
by the administration to fight corruption before elections later this year
Hasina was prime minister between 1996-2001, while Khaleda ended her five-year
term in 2006.
07 May 2008 12:35 GMT
| last updated:
07 May 2008 13:03 GMT
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