bdnews24.com Editor-in-Chief Toufique Imrose Khalidi gets anticipatory bail in ACC case

The High Court has granted bdnews24.com’s Editor-in-Chief Toufique Imrose Khalidi an eight-week anticipatory bail in a case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission.

After bdnews24.com announced a Tk 500 million investment by an asset management company in the news publisher in October last year, the ACC began examining the deal and subsequently started a case against Khalidi on Jul 30 this year.

Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Mostafizur Rahman on Wednesday passed the bail order after hearing a plea by Khalidi's legal team.

In an instant reaction, Khalidi said he was left 'shocked' and 'surprised' by the charges levelled at him by the ACC while questioning the motive behind the case.

Former law minister Abdul Matin Khasru, Advocate Momtaz Uddin Ahmed (Mehedi) and Barrister Mahbub Shafique presented the petition to the judges. The team was aided by Prakash Biswas, Debashish Deb, Noman Hossain Talukder and Mohammad Ehsan Habib.

The case alleges that Khalidi deposited Tk 420 million into different bank accounts after receiving the money “through fraud [and] in an illegal way by creating fake documents”.

But the ACC case dossier itself said that the money came through the sale of company shares owned by bdnews24.com and Khalidi, and it was indeed the same money deposited in the accounts of four banks.

Khalidi, who consistently denies the allegation of corruption, told the media at the beginning of the ACC investigation that bdnews24.com did stories that “hurt a very powerful lobby”, and are “paying the price” for what he believes is good, exemplary journalism done by his colleagues.

After the High Court proceedings on Wednesday, Khasru said the allegation brought against Khalidi was far from true. “The money deposited into his bank accounts came from his valid income. Not a single penny is inconsistent with his known source of income,” he told reporters.

“The court was satisfied with our arguments and granted him an eight-week anticipatory bail.”

Khurshid Alam Khan, the lawyer for the ACC, said they argued that the guideline of the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division does not cover Khalidi’s plea for anticipatory bail. The commission will decide on whether to file an appeal against the bail order, according to the lawyer.

After the hearing, Khalidi told reporters: “If you look at the allegations, you'll find that the FIR is riddled with mistakes. There isn't a word of truth in it. This has been done to create confusion among the people and humiliate me."

Khalidi referred to two articles run by bdnews24.com addressing the allegations stacked against him.

Part 1: Was bdnews24.com share price abnormal, imaginary?

Part 2: bdnews24.com serves legal notice on BRAC EPL on valuation denial

"There are two allegations: one is that the money was earned through unscrupulous means. The other is that BRAC EPL, a subsidiary of BRAC Bank, didn't conduct a valuation of the company."

Khalidi said BRAC EPL sent draft versions of information memorandum of bdnews24.com in 2017 after signing a non-disclosure agreement. "We have also submitted copies of our correspondences with BRAC EPL's managing director and CEO.”

BRAC EPL sent another email in 2018, attaching the revised information memorandum of bdnews24.com with the valuation of Tk 3.71 billion or $46 million, which meant each share was valued at Tk 37,100.

After the ACC began examining the so-called allegation of corruption, Khalidi in an article  detailed the circumstances under which bdnews24.com entered the deal, where the money was, why he himself sold some of his shares and what happened after the deal.

“The matter has been probed by more than one state agency—publicly as well as, may I dare say now, behind the scenes—because the allegations or rumours/gossips (spread through social media and other means in the lead-up to the ACC move) were of serious nature,” he wrote.

 “The cruellest part was, those who orchestrated it all knew all too well that money only changed hands between two companies incorporated in Bangladesh and operated under Bangladesh laws. Yet the vengeful and powerful people were given free rein when they acted from behind the stage. And those who helped them spread the propaganda knew it too. And, again, those who prepared “reports” meant for people at the very top were fully aware of it too.”

“Whose purpose are they trying to serve by trying to harm arguably the lone independent news publisher in Bangladesh which has been credited with many firsts, globally and nationally?

“Why was there an attempt to tarnish the image of both bdnews24.com and the individual who runs it?” he asked.

Internet explodes as thousands ask why questions about ACC case are ignored

ACC prosecutes bdnews24.com Editor-in-Chief Toufique Imrose Khalidi on charges of ‘illegal wealth’

SWIFT STEPS

After receiving a letter from the anti-graft agency, Khalidi appeared in the ACC twice in November 2019.

The letter received by Khalidi on Nov 5 said his statement was required in connection with the allegations of “transferring a huge amount of money” by “hiding location by himself and bdnews24.com”, and “earning wealth inconsistent with his known income through illegal activities”.

The authorities moved swiftly after bdnews24.com announced the investment by LR Global in a report on Oct 13, 2019, saying it will spend the money on the expansion of news automation and creativity.

The disclosure first prompted a decision from the Securities and Exchange Commission to “halt” the deal. For its part, the ACC soon afterwards weighed in, leaving certain bank accounts of Khalidi and bdnews24.com frozen.

In the Jan 25 article published on The Opinion Pages of bdnews24.com, Khalidi wrote that blocking the FDR accounts “(especially the ones held by the company) meant we could not take those crucial steps that would increase our revenue and eventually strengthen our medium- to long-term financial position, thus depriving both parties of the investment dividends”.