Truth and Accountability Commission (), also known as Truth Commission, was a

Bangladesh government The Cabinet of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের মন্ত্রিসভা) is the chief executive body of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. The cabinet is the collective decision-making body of the entire government under ...

regulatory commission formed by the

Fakhruddin Ahmed Fakhruddin Ahmed (born 1 May 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, civil servant, and a former governor of the Bangladesh Bank, the country's central bank. On 12 January 2007, he was appointed Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, Chief Adviser (Head of ...

led

Caretaker Government A caretaker government is a temporary ''ad hoc'' government that performs some governmental duties and functions in a country until a regular government is elected or formed. Depending on specific practice, it usually consists of either randomly se ...

to investigate corruption and was eventually declared illegal by the courts. The Commission was head by Justice Habibur Rahman Khan.

History

The Truth and Accountability Commission was established on 30 July 2008 by the

led

to increase the speed of corruption cases. The Caretaker Government had arrested numerous politicians including former Prime Ministers

Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina Wazed (''née'' Sheikh Hasina ; ; bn, শেখ হাসিনা ওয়াজেদ, Shēkh Hasinā, , born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh since January 2 ...

and

Khaleda Zia Khaleda Zia (; born Khaleda Khanam Putul in 1945) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from March 1991 to March 1996, and again from June 2001 to October 2006. She was the first female prime minister of B ...

on corruption charges. The commission was made up of a former Judge of

Bangladesh Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশ সুপ্রীম কোর্ট) is the highest court of law in Bangladesh. It is composed of the High Court Division and the Appellate Division, and was created by Part VI C ...

Justice Habibur Rahman Khan, retired

Comptroller and Auditor General of Bangladesh The Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের মহা হিসাব নিরীক্ষক ও নিয়ন্ত্রক এর কার্যালয়) ( C&AG) is the Supr ...

Asif Ali, and a retired Major General

Manzur Rashid Chowdhury Manzur ( ar, منظور ''Manẓūr''; also spelled Manzoor or Manzour) is a male Arabic name meaning "approved" or "accepted." It is most commonly used in South and Southeast Asia. Manzur is also a Spanish surname. ;Notable people named Manzu ...

from

Bangladesh Army The Bangladesh Army is the land warfare branch and the largest component of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The primary mission of the Army is to provide necessary forces and capabilities to deliver the Bangladeshi government's security and def ...

. The Commission had the authority to provide immunity to those who confess to corruption and give their ill-gotten wealth to the government. During the commission's short lived life 448 people confessed and deposited 340 million taka in the government treasury. Transparency International Bangladesh noted that the commission collected arbitrary amounts as fines from corruption suspects. Former President

Hussain Mohammad Ershad Lt. Gen. Hussain Muhammad Ershad ( bn, হুসেইন মুহাম্মদ এরশাদ; 1 February 1930 – 14 July 2019) was a Bangladeshi Army Chief politician who served as the President of Bangladesh from 1983 to 1990, a time ma ...

in an opinion piece on The Daily Star described the Commission as "impractical". The amount reported by suspects and deposited by them was only a small fraction of the amount the Anti-Corruption Commission estimated they had stolen. On 25 August 2008,

Supreme Court of Bangladesh The Supreme Court of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশ সুপ্রীম কোর্ট) is the highest court of law in Bangladesh. It is composed of the High Court Division and the Appellate Division, and was created by Part VI C ...

lawyers and politicians filed petitions challenging the legality of the commission based on the argument that only courts are authorized to give verdicts according to the

Constitution of Bangladesh The Constitution of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের সংবিধান — ), officially the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশের ...

. On 13 November 2008, Bangladesh High Court declared the Truth and Accountability Commission illegal. The verdict was delivered by Justices

Mir Hasmat Ali ''Mir'' (russian: Мир, ; ) was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. ''Mir'' was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to&n ...

and

Shamim Hasnain Shamim or Shameem (Bengali: শামীম, Urdu: شمیم) may refer to *Shamim (name) *Shamim Reza Rubel murder in Bangladesh *'' Mr. Shamim'', a 2014 Pakistani sitcom drama series *Baalshamin Baalshamin ( arc, ܒܥܠ ܫܡܝܢ ''Baʿal Šāmī ...

. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina disclosed the names of 456 people who had confessed to the commission in April 2009.

References

2008 establishments in Bangladesh Organisations based in Dhaka Government agencies of Bangladesh 2008 disestablishments in Bangladesh {{Bangladesh-org-stub