Probe into allegations of graft at HSTU begins

8 July 2009, 17:00 PM

Our Correspondent, Dinajpur

A five-member probe committee yesterday started investigation into alleged corruption in Hajee Danesh Science and Technology University (HSTU) since 2001. Following a directive from the Ministry of Education, HSTU authorities formed the committee led by Prof Md Anis Khan, chairman of HRT, at the end of last June. Other members of the committee are Saidul Haque Chowdhury, academic councillor of Bangladesh Agriculture University and member of HSTU regent board, Dr Boloram Roy, chairman of biochemistry and director of Information Technology, Shahidul Islam, former director general of Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute, and Dr Fahima Khanom, director of Finance and Banking at HSTU. On the first day, the probe team summoned 22 staffs of HSTU and 15 of them attended and spoke with team members. Md Mosharraf Hossain Miah, who served as vice chancellor of HSTU from 2001 to 2006, later took charge as VC of Bangladesh Agriculture University at Mymensingh but was removed after an investigation by University Grants Commission in the end of 2007 found several corruption allegations against him to be true. Major allegations during the tenure of the former HSTU vice chancellor are embezzlement of huge funds, political appointments and nepotism, HSTU sources said. During that period, Tk 1.3cr was allegedly misappropriated from Tk 10 crore construction work of Zia Hall. Tk 6 lakh was also embezzled in the name of installing V-SAT at the HSTU. According to the findings of the UGC investigation conducted in late 2007, the HSTU authorities during the tenure of former VC Mosharraf Hossain awarded printing work worth about Tk 2 crore to a printing press without any tender. The probe report also held the former HSTU VC responsible for embezzling Tk 300,000 as house rent, telephone bills and fuels for vehicles. At several meetings of HSTU Regent Board, board member former army chief Lt Gen (rtd) Mahbubur Rahman talked about the irregularities but to no effect. Finally he resigned from the regent board on June 31 in 2006 in protest. Despite repeated attempts, Dr Mosharraf Hossain Miah could not be contacted over his cell phone.