ACC prosecutes three former BTRC chairmen ‘Tk 91bn revenue loss’

The case alleges unauthorised alterations to IGW call-termination rates and revenue-sharing rules that ran for over two years beyond the approved trial period

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has prosecuted three former chairmen of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission and three other senior officials over alleged unlawful changes to international call-termination rates that caused losses of around Tk 91 billion.

ACC spokesperson Akhtarul Islam said the case was lodged on Wednesday at the Integrated District Office, Dhaka-1.

He confirmed that ACC Director Md Jalal Uddin Ahammad submitted the case plea.

The three former BTRC chairmen, Sunil Kanti Bose, Shahjahan Mahmood, and Md Jahurul Haque, served under the ousted Awami League government.

Jahurul had first served as a commissioner before becoming chairman, and later joined the ACC as commissioner. He resigned in October 2024 after the interim government took office.

The other suspects are retired brigadier general Md Ahsan Habib Khan, who served as BTRC vice-chairman, and former commissioners Md Rezaul Kader and Md Aminul Hasan.

According to the case document, the officials altered the call-termination rate and revenue-sharing structure for International Gateway (IGW) operators without government approval, providing financial benefits to IGW companies and causing major revenue losses to the state.

The allegation centres on the period from October 2015 to January 2018, during which BTRC officials kept a lowered rate in force despite the expiry of a one-year government-approved trial structure.

The authorised trial rate between Sept 18, 2014, and Sept 30, 2015, set the call-termination rate at $0.03 per minute, with BTRC receiving 51.75 percent and IGW operators receiving 13.25 percent.

After the experimental period ended, the officials “illegally maintained” lower rates for 28 months, with the termination rate reduced to $0.015 per minute, government share cut to 40 percent, and IGW share increased to 20 percent.

According to the graft buster, the unauthorised extension of the experimental rate was intended to provide “financial benefits” to IGW operators, amounting to “misuse of power and criminal breach of trust”.

The case file details the estimated loss in three segments:

• Lower revenue-sharing rate: Tk 3.84 billion

• Lower call-termination rate: Tk 29.42 billion

• Failure to repatriate $72.1 million in foreign currency, equivalent to Tk 56.85 billion

Read the full story in Bangla