IKB Remains A Beneficiary All The Way Till Now

Former Chief of Staff of Bangladesh Army General (Retd) Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan (IKB) was one of the most blessed, pampered and profusely privileged military officers during authoritarian Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's ruling period. IKB was the mastermind behind the heavily rigged election of 2014 as he held the rank of Army Chief back then and he abused his power in every unethical way. The controversial polls of 2014 devastated democratic exercise in Bangladesh and crippled Bangladesh's electoral machineries perpetually. Moreover, Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan implemented the vicious and ruthless task of demolishing Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia's residence in Dhaka Cantonment in 2010. Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan thoroughly monitored the demolition process of Begum Khaleda Zia's home and also the eviction of Khaleda Zia from Dhaka Cantonment in a totally unjustifiable way on 13 November 2010.

Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan has been absconding abroad since 5 August 2024 when former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted from power. But Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan has since then been active on social media through his paid agents who are located both inside Bangladesh and overseas reportedly. According to reliable sources, Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan is making attempts to influence the current interim government and also the military services. IKB takes assistance from some bloggers located in foreign countries for posting his statements on social media because IKB himself is not a tech-savvy guy.

Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan was also Quarter Master General in Bangladesh Army during Sheikh Hasina's ruling period. He was rewarded with the Army Chief echelon for his direct intervention in the 2014 elections which was declined by most of the opposition parties in Bangladesh. This election fortified the overthrown ruling party's grip on power dreadfully. Despite being an army officer, General (Retd) Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan's vast assets are a matter of wonder to everyone. He launched a 600 megawatt power plant in Bangladesh, owns a private university, a private hospital and possesses an enormous range of land properties in Bangladesh and he also transferred a large amount of siphoned off funds from Bangladesh to foreign countries.

IKB's Kinglike Assets:
a)  600 megawatt power plant
b) A private university
c)   Massive land properties
d) Private hospital

Reports have surfaced that General (Retd) Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan spoiled the integrity of the defence purchase department by abusing the direct purchase method (DPM) and by means of DPM channels IKB laundered abroad countless sums of cash and built up an empire of wealth overseas. Very remarkable is the fact that IKB connected branded graft ringleader and severely dishonest contractor Motajjerul Islam Mithu with military services. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) seized all assets of Motajjerul Islam Mithu in October 2023 on charges of polluting the health sector with graft and unauthorized manipulation.

Another individual needs to be named in this context-Nurul Islam Chhoton who under the current circumstances claims himself to be BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman's close buddy and a mentor of the student leaders who formed National Citizens Party (NCP). Reliable sources have informed that Nurul Islam Chhoton has tied up with some unscrupulous ACC officials and thus subjecting honest business leaders, entrepreneurs and journalists to harassment for bribes. A particular section of BNP marks Nurul Islam Chhoton as a hypocrite and a traitor though he has jumped on the bandwagon taking advantage of the volatile political situation that arose following August 2024.

ACC Chairman Dr. Abdul Momen was once upon a time Begum Khaleda Zia's Private Secretary when Khaleda Zia was Prime Minister. A number of BNP leaders have told The Asian Age that ACC should thoroughly scrutinize the voluminous pile of corruption allegations about IKB and his cohorts. At the same time ACC should without delay carry out a drive inside their own organization to identify corrupted officers and to prosecute them.

Sadiq Musa is an investigative journalist and an academic scholar based in London, United Kingdom.