Dhaka Court Issues Arrest Warrants for 18 in Rajuk Land Scam, Including Former PM and Daughter
A Dhaka court has issued arrest warrants against 18 individuals, including former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her daughter Saima Wazed Putul, in a high-profile case involving alleged irregularities in the allocation of land under the Rajuk Purbachal New Town Project.
The arrest orders were issued on Thursday (10 April) by Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Md Zakir Hossain Galib, following the acceptance of a chargesheet submitted by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
According to ACC Public Prosecutor Mir Ahammed Salam, the court has set 4 May as the deadline for submission of the full investigation report.
Originally filed on 12 January, the case initially named 16 individuals. However, the final chargesheet submitted on 10 March expanded the list to 18 accused. The ACC alleges that Saima Wazed influenced the land allocation process by bypassing proper legal channels and directly appealing to her mother, then prime minister.
The chargesheet claims Saima applied for a 10-katha plot in Purbachal through her mother rather than following Rajuk’s official process, despite already having access to property within Dhaka city limits—an act which violates Rajuk’s policy.
Also among those named in the case are several high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Housing and Public Works, including Additional Secretary Qazi Wasi Uddin and Secretary Md Shahid Ullah Khandaker, alongside former Rajuk officials and close aides to the former prime minister.
The accused list includes:
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Md Saiful Islam Sarkar (Administrative Officer)
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Purobi Goldar (Senior Assistant Secretary)
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Qazi Wasi Uddin (Additional Secretary)
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Md Shahid Ullah Khandaker (Secretary)
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Mohammad Khurshid Alam, Kabir Al Asad, Tanmay Das, Mohammad Nasir Uddin (Ex-Rajuk members)
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Major (Retd) Samsuddin Ahmed Chowdhury
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Md Nurul Islam, Sheikh Shahinul Islam, Md Hafizur Rahman, Habibur Rahman
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Md Anisur Rahman Miah (PA to former Rajuk chairman)
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Mohammad Salahuddin (Former Prime Minister’s Personal Secretary-1)
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Former State Minister Sharif Ahmed
The case marks a significant development in a long-running inquiry into land misuse and favoritism within one of the country’s largest urban development projects.