Orion Group Chairman Obaidul Karim remains in a secure position despite allegations of embezzling Tk600 crore from the UAE-based Belhasa Engineering and Construction Company.
The accusations revolve around fraudulent activities through which Obaidul Karim reportedly took over a joint venture company.
Belhasa has pursued legal action, citing incidents of forgery, fraud, and the disappearance of crucial documents.
Furthermore, Obaidul Karim has allegedly defaulted on a loan of Tk166 crore, borrowed under the company's name.
The origins of the controversy trace back to 2003, when the Dhaka City Corporation invited international tenders for the Jatrabari-Gulistan Flyover project.
Orion Group, lacking the requisite qualifications for such international projects, partnered with Belhasa Engineering and Construction Company to participate in the bidding process.
To meet legal requirements, Orion Group's subsidiary, Ecom & Associates Limited, formed a joint venture with Belhasa, resulting in the creation of Belhasa Ecom & Associates Limited.
In August 2003, the newly formed company was awarded the contract.
Based on this, Belhasa Engineering and Construction Company made substantial financial investments.
However, shortly thereafter, Obaidul Karim secretly appointed his son as a director and, through forged signatures of Belhasa's directors, restructured the company's board under the name Belhasa Ecom & Associates Limited.
Obaidul Karim managed to register the joint stock company without the necessary TIN number, effectively gaining control over the company’s bank accounts and siphoning off Tk600 crore.
Following this, he severed communication with the foreign company.
As the situation became apparent, Zubair Ahmed Bhuiyan, representing Belhasa Engineering Company as their Power of Attorney, filed a case against Obaidul Karim, his son Salman Obaidul Karim, and seven others in a Dhaka court, accusing them of fraud.
The lawsuit also included charges of document forgery.
In 2005, Bhuiyan sought the cancellation of Belhasa Ecom’s memorandum and associated articles, registered with the Dhaka Joint Stock Company through fraudulent means.
Following hearings, on 27 July 2010, Judge Mohammad Ash Shams Joglul Hossain ordered Zubair Ahmed Bhuiyan to deposit a court fee of Tk40,200.
Despite several hearings, the case remains unresolved due to the mysterious disappearance of the case files.
According to the case statement, on 5 April 2003, the government decided to construct the Jatrabari-Gulistan Flyover, prompting the Dhaka City Corporation to invite tenders.
Subsequently, Belhasa Engineering and Construction Company, based in the UAE, and Obaidul Karim’s Bangladesh-based Ecom Engineering and Company Limited jointly submitted a tender and secured the contract.
After receiving the work order, the two companies entered into a joint venture agreement to build the flyover. In accordance with this, Obaidul Karim’s company submitted the Article of Memorandum to the Joint Stock Company and Firms to register a joint stock company under the name Belhasa Ecom & Associates Limited.
However, through forgery, Obaidul Karim, Salman Obaidul Karim, and Mehedi Hasan declared themselves shareholders and directors of Belhasa Ecom.
They forged the signatures of Belhasa’s Managing Director Majed Ahmed and several directors to submit the necessary documents for registration with the Joint Stock Company and Firms.
Not only did Obaidul Karim, Salman Karim, and Mehedi Hasan forge signatures, but they also violated the terms of the joint venture agreement and the laws and regulations governing registration with the Joint Stock Company and Firms.
The defendants are accused of embezzling Tk600 crore from Belhasa and exploiting the name of Belhasa Ecom to obtain millions from various government and private financial institutions.
In a separate development, Mohammed Obaidul Karim and his son, Salman Obaidul Karim, have taken a loan of Tk166 crore from a bank under the name of Belhasa Ecom & Associates Limited.
The company’s TIN is reportedly missing, and Obaidul Karim’s name has already been included in the Bangladesh Bank’s list of loan defaulters.
