Bangladesh law minister Mohammad Asaduzzaman on Sunday announced that former President Mohammad Shahabuddin, who resigned two days ago , will be probed for corruption allegations.
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"The government does not want to do injustice against any person. But the allegations of corruption before his assumption of presidency are being scrutinised thoroughly,” Asaduzzaman told reporters in Chattogram.
The minister added that due to "public demand," legal action would be taken following investigations into the allegations against the former president.
Shahabuddin, a longtime ally of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, resigned on Friday citing health complications, two years before the end of his tenure. He had assumed office as president in April 2023, nearly a year before Hasina was ousted in a student-led uprising in August 2024.
His resignation came amid speculation that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's government was "uncomfortable" with him. Rahman is the son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, Bangladesh's first woman prime minister and a longtime rival of Sheikh Hasina. Khaleda Zia died in December last year, days after Rahman returned from the UK following 17 years in exile.
Meanwhile, Asaduzzaman hinted that Shahabuddin's roles as director of the statutory Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and later as director of private lender Islami Bank Bangladesh could also come under government scrutiny.
Asked whether any overseas travel ban had been imposed on the former president, Asaduzzaman said the matter falls under the jurisdiction of the Home Ministry.
On whether Shahabuddin could be arrested, he stated that political parties might raise such demands, but their legal basis would be examined accordingly.
Parliament Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed will serve as acting president for 90 days under the Constitution, during which a new president must be elected.
Ahmed, who was abroad for medical treatment, returned home early to take charge of the country's highest office.
Media reports claimed that Shahabuddin had recently spoken to Sheikh Hasina over the phone, drawing disappointment from the top leadership of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
However, in an interview with The Daily Star on Thursday, Shahabuddin dismissed the reports as "baseless."
(With PTI inputs)
