Travel ban issued on NBR’s Motiur, his wife and son

The Anti-Corruption Commission has accused him of graft and money laundering

A court has issued a travel ban on revenue officer Md Motiur Rahman – who came under scrutiny in connection with the purchase of a goat for Tk 1.5 million – his wife Laila Kaniz and son Ahamed Toufiqur Rahman Arnob, barring the three from travelling abroad.

Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Mohammad As-Shams Jaglul Hossain issued the ban on Monday in response to a petition from the Anti-Corruption Commission, said court clerk Foyez Ahmed.

ACC Deputy Director Md Anowar Hossain, the head of the committee formed to probe Motiur’s ‘illegal assets’, made the petition.

The committee is looking into “accusations of accumulating illegal assets at home and abroad through corruption and money laundering of a huge amount of money abroad through Hundis and under-invoicing/over-invoicing” against Motiur, the petition said.

“It is known from reliable sources that Md Motiur Rahman and his family are attempting to leave the country. Therefore, in the interest of a fair investigation, it is necessary to ban him and his family members from travelling abroad.”

Motiur was removed from his post as president of the NBR’s Customs, Excise, and VAT Appellate Tribunal on Sunday and attached to the Ministry of Finance’s Internal Resources Division.

He was also serving as a government-nominated director of the state-owned Sonali Bank. The bank’s board of directors have decided to remove him from the role as well.

A man named Mushfiqur Rahman Ifat made a Facebook post about his intent to buy a goat for Tk 1.5 million from Sadiq Agro in Dhaka’s Mohammadpur ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, drawing intense social media scrutiny.

Many people questioned how Ifat could afford such an extravagant Eid sacrifice and wondered at his source of income. On social media, Ifat identified revenue official Motiur as his father.

The revelation prompted further questions on how the son of a government official could afford the goat.

Ifat did not end up buying the goat. Sadiq Agro owner Mohammad Imran Hossain claimed that Ifat had booked the goat for Tk 100,000 but did not pay the remaining price.

Ifat fired back that his claim of buying the goat was a publicity stunt to draw attention to Sadiq Agro.

Motiur added fuel to the fire when he denied that Ifat was his son. In a television interview, he claimed that he had only one son and that it was not Ifat.

Afterwards, information about Ifat's identity and family arrangement began to be posted on Facebook. Pictures of Motiur and other members of his family with Ifat were uncovered.

At one point Nizam Uddin Hazari, Feni-2 MP, appeared on a television programme and claimed that Ifat was Motiur’s son from his second marriage.

Motiur's first wife Laila was a former education cadre officer who left her government job and entered politics. She is now the chairman of Raipura Upazila Parishad in Narsingdi.

Before his appointment to the tribunal, Motiur worked at the Bangladesh Commercial Council in Brussels, the Chattogram Customs and Large Taxpayer Unit (LTU), and has served as VAT commissioner.

Motiur was a student in the Department of Finance at Dhaka University and entered the civil service in 1994 as an officer in the 11th BCS (Customs and Excise).

On Feb 1, 2022, the Ministry of Finance appointed him as Sonali Bank director for a three-year term.

Throughout a 30-year career, Motiur has previously been investigated for graft by the ACC.

In an interview given to a private TV channel, he said: “The ACC has investigated me four times and found that I did not engage in any corruption.”

In addition to his government job, Motiur is involved in business and has invested in the stock market. Regarding his massive income, he said: “I have shares in a group of companies who own 300 acres of land. I have investments in some factories. But I do not own all of the 300 acres, nor the entirety of the factories. Our family has only invested.”