Gaibandha’s Haridas sent to jail after remand in flat fraud case

Haridas Chandra Tarani Das, who had drawn attention for initiating the construction of an 81-foot-tall statue of Rama in Palashbari, Gaibandha, has been sent to jail after completing a two-day remand in a fraud case filed over an alleged embezzlement of nearly Tk 7.6 million (76 lakh) on the promise of providing a flat.

Police produced Haridas before the court on Monday after completing his remand and sought an order to keep him in jail. Following the plea, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Sarah Farzana Haque ordered that he be sent to jail.

Sub-Inspector Helal Uddin of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Prosecution Department confirmed the matter to Prothom Alo.

According to court sources, the court granted Haridas a two-day remand in the flat fraud case on 10 September.

Earlier, on 24 August, Mahbubur Rahman, an employee of a private organisation, filed the fraud case with Uttara West police station against Haridas Chandra Tarani Das and another man, Obaidul Islam.

According to the case statement, the accused took Tk 7,586,000 from complainant Mahbubur Rahman on the promise of providing him with a flat and allegedly embezzled the money.

Earlier, on 12 July, Sub-Inspector Saiful Islam of the CID’s Financial Crime Unit filed a case with Uttara West police station against Haridas and several others over an alleged money-laundering offence involving Tk 93.5 million (9.35 crore).

That same night, the Detective Branch (DB) of police arrested Haridas from an area near a temple in Palashbari upazila of Gaibandha. Following his remand in that case, the court sent him to jail on 16 July. He has remained in jail since then.