Suspended KCC chief engineer arrested, remanded
Being quizzed in two cases for extortion, murder
The suspended chief engineer of Khulna City Corporation (KCC) and project director of the Municipal Services Project (MSP) Md Liquat Ali Sharif was arrested yesterday from stadium area in the city while he was on way to his official residence by a rickshaw after testifying against detained Mayor Sheikh Tayebur Rahman in a court in an extortion case.
After arrest at about 1:30 pm, police took him on remand for five days for questioning in an extortion case and a murder case.
According to police, Liakat Ali Sharif while serving as KCC chief engineer, demanded Tk 50,000 as bribe on September 20 last year from Md Shamim Parvez, son of SM Shajahan of Sonadanga for giving him a job in KCC.
The bribe was paid in full at 8-30 am on October 5 in the same year at his official residence at Haji Mohosin Road in the city.
Shamim Parvez filed a case at 10 am yesterday with Khulna Sadar police station accusing the suspended chief engineer for extortion and giving him death threat.
The case was recorded under sections 385, 384, 406 and 420 of Bangladesh Penal Code.
Liakat Ali appeared before the court yesterday to testify against detained Mayor for the second time in one of the nine extortion cases against Sheikh Tayebur Rahman, filed with Khulna Sadar police station on November 2 last year by another suspended official of KCC SM Hafizur Rahman.
Hafizur Rahman accused the Mayor of taking Tk 2,90,000 as bribe in the name of giving him promotion in service.
The suspended chief engineer who is a charge-sheet prosecution witness of the extortion case testified in the court for the first time on Wednesday last, saying that he had seen the Mayor receiving bribe from the complainant on October 3, 2004 at his office in KCC.
But it was proved in the court yesterday by Mayor's defence lawyer that the Mayor was in New Delhi for treatment from September 26 to October 7, 2004. This was proved by his passport.
Liakat Ali Sharif who joined as an assistant engineer of KCC in 1987, was arrested first in 1988 on charge of his alleged involvement in murder of a prominent jute merchant Anisur Rahman Anu. He was released on bail by High Court after one year and he managed to get back his job due to political influence.
He was suspended five times during his tenure from 1987 till September 21 last year on charge of corruption.
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