Hasina blames "one person" for World Bank pullout on Padma Bridge

Prime Minister Sheikha Hasina has said that the World Bank pulled out of the Padma Bridge project "just for one person".

"It is because of this person that the World Bank pulled out. This was easily our biggest infrastructure project and we expected World Bank financing for it," she said on Tuesday.

But she did not name the person.

The World Bank raised a stink over alleged corruption in execution of the Padma Bridge project and suspended funding. Bangladesh was forced to withdraw funding request and is now implementing the project with its own resources.

A case was started at a Canada court against SNC-Lavalin, accusing the company of bribing Bangladeshi officials to secure contracts in the Padma Bridge project in 2010-11.

After a long process, the Canadian court acquitted the three employees of the Canada-based SNC Lavalin on Friday.

The verdict said the evidence produced in the case was "nothing more than assumptions and rumours."

Prime Minister and Awami League chief Hasina suspected some other reason behind the 'false allegations.'

"Such a critical project for the country was adversely impacted only because one person's interests were hurt," she said at an ECNEC meeting.

Hasina have claimed time and again that the allegations raised by the World Bank were part of conspiracy against Bangladesh and that some Bangladeshis were involved in the scam.

In parliament, she blamed Nobel Laureate Mohammed Yunus as using then US secretary of State Hillary Clinton for disrupting World Bank funding. A Bangladesh editor was also blamed for the conspiracy.

But Mohammed Yunus' office stoutly rejected the allegations.

"Now it is confirmed that those allegations were fabricated only to hinder our work. What I said then has now been proven by the Canadian court verdict," Hasina said Tuesday.

The project would have been finished by now, but for these allegations, she said.

Erstwhile Communications Minister Abul Hossain was forced to resign following allegations of involvement with the scam. Former state minister for foreign affairs Abul Hasan Chowdhury also faced similar allegations.

Former Bridge Division Secretary Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan was sent to jail over the case.

Later Anti-Corruption Commission investigated the matter and found no evidence against them.

"Because of them (World Bank), one of our secretaries had to serve in jail for a year. Nothing can be more embarrassing than this," the prime minister said.

The Padma bridge graft case was dismissed in 2014 after ACC submitted its final probe report. The court acquitted seven including Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan from the charges.