Crime & Justice

Bangladesh sues Nobel laureate Yunus over embezzlement

Dhaka, May 30 (EFE).- Bangladesh’s anti-graft body on Tuesday filed a case against Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus and 12 others for misappropriating over 250 million taka (some $2.35 million) from the workers’ welfare fund of a company.

The move came after a primary investigation found allegations of embezzlement by Grameen Telecom chairman Yunus and its other board members to be true, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) director general Rezanur Rahman said at a press briefing in Dhaka.

The ACC launched the probe against Yunus and others in 2022 following a complaint from the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments over fund embezzlement and money laundering.

“We found the allegation against Grameen Telecom chairman and other members to be primarily true,” Rezanur said.

Yunus or any of his spokespersons were not immediately available for comments.

This is the latest legal move against Yunus by the Bangladeshi authorities since he was removed from the post of managing director of the pioneering microcredit firm Grameen Bank in 2011.

Yunus, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize with him in 2006, was removed from his position by the authorities. The economist appealed the order unsuccessfully.

Grameen Telecom and Grameen Bank are two separate organizations.

He maintains a tense relationship with the Bangladeshi authorities since a documentary appeared in 2010 that denounced alleged transfers of illegal funds between the two entities in the Grameen Group.

In recent years, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina criticized Yunus for allegedly influencing the World Bank to cancel funding for the construction of a mega bridge project, an allegation he denied.

In March, in an open letter, 40 global leaders, including Hillary Clinton, expressed concerns about Yunus’ well-being, saying that he was being “unfairly attacked and repeatedly harassed and investigated” by the Bangladesh government. EFE

am/sc

Related Articles

Back to top button