Bangladesh has begun an inquiry into several organisations founded by Nobel laureate Dr Mohamed Yunus, which are enjoying ‘illegal’ tax benefits, said finance minister AMA Muhith yesterday.
“It’s a very difficult issue…professor Yunus has taken tax benefits for organisations with the name Grameen; it is illegal.
It is being investigated, that’s all,” he told newsmen.
His remarks came after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina lashed out at the former Grameen Bank managing director while speaking in parliament.
During a question-and-answer session on Wednesday, Hasina described the Nobel laureate as a ‘cheat’. The prime minister claimed Yunus does not pay taxes against his fixed deposits with banks. “He has a lot of money, but does not pay taxes and filed a lawsuit over it.
He’s doing fine without paying taxes.”
Hasina said that Grameen Bank enjoys a tax benefit, but there are 40 to 50 other sister concerns, which also don’t pay tax. “Why will they not pay taxes? The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has those reports.”
She then pointed to Muhith, who was sitting beside her in the parliament and said: “The honourable finance minister is here.
It’s his responsibility and he will take care of it.”
Muhith’s remarks came after a reporter brought up the issue and asked whether the ministry has taken initiatives over the unpaid taxes.
Disclosing in the parliament, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said former Grameen Bank managing director Yunus lobbied with former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton to terminate World Bank’s commitment to financing the Padma Bridge project.
Replying to a supplementary question from Jatiya Party member AKM Maidul Islam in the parliament, the prime minister said Yunus “turned against us” after losing the legal fight for the post of the managing director of Grameen Bank.
“Then his wrath fell on the Padma Bridge project.
An editor of a renowned newspaper of our country met the then World Bank president Robert Zoellick and lobbied with Hillary to cancel the finance,” the prime minister told the House.
“Even after releasing no funds for the project, the World Bank raised allegations of corruption against me and my family members, which was completely an act of vengeance by Yunus,” she said.
The prime minister said the Padma Bridge project was for development of the south, which had been neglected for a long time.
The region is also very vulnerable to climate change.
At the very beginning of the initiation of the project, she said the World Bank had showed keen interest in financing the project and promised to fund construction of the bridge.
Sheikh Hasina said Yunus persuaded the World Bank to withdraw from the project and raise allegations of corruption against her and her family members.
“They made a frantic search to establish their allegation but failed to establish anything,” she said adding, “I had taken the matter as a challenge as I had mental strength to take the decision of constructing the bridge with our own resources”. The prime minister said she is in politics for welfare of the people, not for gain.
However, the prime minister didn’t say anything about a Question on taking legal actions against alleged siphoning of funds by Grameen Bank abroad.
She said the government has exempted Grameen Bank from paying tax on its income in good faith that the bank would work for real welfare of the downtrodden.
But other enterprises of the company were not exempted from tax.
So, the NBR may take actions against the tax evasion,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said her government in 1997 gave licence for Grameen Phone to Dr Yunus as he promised that the profit of the telephone operator would go for welfare of the members of the Grameen Bank.
“But, Yunus cheated the government and people by establishing the Grameen Phone as his personal company.
Now he has sold out most of the company’s share to foreign partners keeping only 30% shares in his name,” she said.
Replying to a question from the Awami League member Kamal Ahmed Majumder, the prime minister said the government had undertaken ‘Ekti Bari Ekti Khamar’ (One House, One Farm) project to protect the poor from micro credit lenders.
She blasted Dr Yunus for charging about 40% interest from debtors saying the interest rate was so exorbitant that poor people could not afford it.
The prime minister refuted the allegation that the government had removed Yunus from the position of the managing director (MD) of the Grameen Bank.
Yunus was legally disqualified for the post of MD, the government proposed he accept ‘Advisor Emeritus’. But he refused to accept the proposal and opted to file a case against the government and central bank, she said adding that “he lost the battle as law was not in his favour”.
The prime minister said Hillary Clinton phoned her not to remove Dr Yunus.
l Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday visited Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s ancestral home in Gopalganj city, now being used as the district unit office of Awami League as she is now on a two-day visit to her village home.
“After her oath of office, this is her first visit to Bangabandhu’s ancestral home at Bank Para in Gopalganj city which Bangabandhu’s father Sheikh Lutfor Rahman purchased in 1950s and used as a residence,” a relative and leader of the local Awami League said.
People in the neighbourhood said during the Liberation War Pakistani occupation forces burnt down the home forcing Bangabandhu to purchase another piece of land beside his ancestral home while the original one was left unattended for a long time after his brutal murder in 1975.
In 1980s, Sheikh Hasina renovated the home and allowed the Awami League to use it as party office.
Hasina at the 11th National Rover Moot at Gopalganj yesterday.
