A syndicate within the National Housing Authority (NHA) has allegedly made crores of taka by allocating land by using forged documents and providing jobs to people through fake academic certificates.
It is learnt from sources that some class-four employees in collusion with top officials have amassed huge illegal wealth through massive irregularities and corruption during the tenure of former NHA chairman Mostafizur Rahman.
Following transfer of Mostafizur Rahman four months ago in May this year amid the allegation against NHA employees, the authorities concerned directed several officials to take charge of the post, but none is yet to join the post.
Currently, Additional Secretary Md Hamidur Rahman Khan of the Ministry of Housing and Public Works are overseeing the activities of the National Housing Authority.
An investigation carried out by the Bangladesh Post reveals that during Mostafizur’s tenure, a syndicate leased out a property ‘Nucleus Housing’ in Mirpur Housing Estate in the name of a non-existent owner by using fake documents.
Some class-4 employees including Mustafa Kamal Shahin, record room keeper Kamrul, office assistant Shawkat Hossain and administrative officer Mushfiqur Islam along with others of the land management department are the members of this syndicate.
This syndicate secretly collected digital numbers of missing files of housing plots from the Mirpur branch of the NHA, which were unaccounted for in the record room. They forged allocation letters and clearance certificates and sold the plots using fake lease deeds in collaboration with record-keeping staff.
During the investigation, Nucleus Housing located in Mirpur Section 10, Block A, Lane 11, House No. 9 was not found in the digital records of the record room. The syndicate made fake documents outside the office, forged signatures of officials concerned and managed to get the file approved.
On April 3, the forged deed for the property was processed at Pallabi Sub-Registrar’s Office by Mustafa Kamal Shahin and Mushfiqur Islam, sources alleged.
Three persons named Idris Ali, Abdur Rauf and Fazir Uddin had been occupying the plot for ‘Nucleus Housing’ since the country's independence with all the utility bills paid in their names. Yet, 61 years later, the ‘lease deed’ was done in the name of one Raushan Ara Khanam.
During a visit to the plot, this correspondent found that no one in the name of Raushan Ara was residing there.
According to the NHA policy formulated in 2019, no file would be approved without a digital number, but the file for this plot somehow got approval. The file was opened in 1962, but Raushan Ara’s date of birth was also recorded in the same year, raising further suspicion. A person named Jamal listed in the deed as a witness with his address at 182 Segun Bagicha could not be found.
During the investigation, it was also found that the payment receipt for the property had been signed without proper verification, and a new receipt was allegedly forged to cover up the discrepancies.
When contacted through a text message, NHA Member (Land and Property Management) Mohammad Kuddus Ali Sarkar quickly cancelled the forged lease deed after learning about the case.
The syndicate’s manipulation did not stop here. In a similar way, they intentionally misplaced original documents, created fake papers and forged officials’ signatures to make deeds without digital numbers.
One such example is Plot 8/2, located in Section 10, Block-C, Lane-10, Mirpur, which was allocated solely to one Nur Banu on November 20, 1979, under memo No 7820 for 400 square yards.
Despite a condition that payment to be made within 30 days, Nur Banu failed to deposit the money in the bank. As per this condition, 243 square yards of land were also allocated to Sundar Nesa the same year, but she too did not deposit the money.
When Nur Banu failed to meet the conditions, her previous allocation was cancelled. However, on June 6, 1995, through file MP-80/95, memo No 6754, the same plot was reallocated. Despite the dual allocation, the plot was allocated in the name of one person. On May 4, 1995, Nur Banu was given two alternative rehabilitation plots ¬—No 30 and No 32 in Section 13, Block-B, Lane-1, under memo No 5144, through file MP-360/87.
The size of these plots was 313.33 square yards. The first allocation file disappeared, and this new allocation referenced the original 1979 allocation.
However, since Nur Banu failed to pay the required bank deposit, the allocation was deemed illegal.
The allocation was completely fraudulent. The verification report given by then Assistant Director Ehsanul Hakim was never recorded in the LA branch volume.
When the status of possession for Nur Banu’s two rehabilitation plots was investigated, Administrative Officer Shamsuddoha Patwary falsely reported that caretakers and tenants were residing on the plots without proper verification, which was later proven to be entirely false.
The investigation also reveals that the memo numbers for the plots allocated to Nur Banu were not recorded in the official record. The issued memo numbers, signatures and reports from the office of the executive engineer concerned about the actual possession were forged.
While checking the newly created file, it was found that though the allocation letter mentioned Plot No. 8/2 in Section 10, Block-C, Lane-10 as a rehabilitation plot, the note sheet listed the plot as 4/2.
Besides, while the lease deed was approved for registration in 2018, it was not executed until six years later on December 13, 2023 under lease deed number 11301.
This correspondent contacted Kuddus Ali Sarkar over phone. But he declined to talk to this correspondent in this regard.
When contacted, Mustafa Kamal Shahin said that he had no involvement in the matter saying, “you can write whatever you like."
