A writ petition was filed on Tuesday with the High Court, seeking a directive for the Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate allegations against deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her family members, and her former defence and security adviser, Tarique Ahmed Siddique, over the alleged embezzlement of $5 billion from the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant Project.
The bench of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Muhammad Mahbub Ul Islam has scheduled a hearing in October to hear the petition, which was filed by Bobby Hajjaj, founder and chairman of the Nationalist Democratic Movement.
The petition referenced an article published on August 17, 2024, by the Global Defense Corp, which accused Sheikh Hasina, her sister Sheikh Rehana, her son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, Rehana鈥檚 daughter Tulip Siddique, and Tarique Ahmed Siddique of siphoning off over $5 billion from the project.
It further alleged that Tulip Siddique, a British Member of Parliament, played a significant role in coordinating the project with Russian officials.
According to the petition, the alleged embezzlement involved collusion with Russian officials, resulting in inflated costs for the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.
The project, a joint collaboration between Bangladesh and Russia, is primarily financed by Rosatom, Russia鈥檚 state-owned atomic energy corporation, which has committed to funding 90 per cent of the $12.65 billion total project cost.
The petition highlighted the importance of investigating these claims, given the significant financial investment and the potential impact on Bangladesh energy sector.
The petition named as respondents the secretaries to the ministries of power, energy and mineral resources, science and technology, and home affairs, the chairman of the ACC, the chairman of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission, the managing director of the Nuclear Power Plant Company, the project director of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant Project, Rosatom State Nuclear Energy Corporation, and Prochchaya Limited.