HBM Iqbal

HBM Iqbal
এইচ বি এম ইকবাল
Member of the Bangladesh Parliament
for Dhaka-10
In office
14 July 1996 – 13 July 2001
Preceded byAbdul Mannan
Succeeded byAbdul Mannan
Personal details
NationalityBangladeshi
Political partyBangladesh Awami League
Spouses
Momtaz Begum
​
(died 2022)​
OccupationEntrepreneur
Websitedrhbmiqbal.com

HBM Iqbal is a Bangladeshi entrepreneur and the founder chairperson of Premier Group of Companies Ltd. He is also a Bangladesh Awami League politician and a former Jatiya Sangsad member representing the Dhaka-10 constituency during 1996–2001.[1]

Career

Iqbal was elected as a Bangladesh Awami League candidate representing the Dhaka-10 constituency in June 1996 and served as the Chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee at the Ministry of Science and Technology.[1][2]

On 13 February 2001, shots were fired from Iqbal's rally to the rally of the then opposition party, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), in the Malibagh area of Dhaka.[1][3] Photographs of the incident were published in newspapers.[3][1] Four people in the BNP rally were killed in the shooting.[4] Iqbal, along with 23 others, were charged on 29 December 2002, by the Detective Branch.[5][6] In August 2010, Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 dropped the case against him, MP Nurunnabi Chowdhury and 12 others after the Ministry of Home Affairs had recommended to drop the charges citing it as a "political harassment case" in 2009.[5][7]

On 25 June 2007, Iqbal was charged with corruption by the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC).[8][9][10][11] He was sentenced to 13 years in jail on 11 March 2008; 10 years for undeclared assets worth Tk 22.9 crore and 3 years for concealing information on property worth more than Tk 16 crore.[12][13] His wife, Momtaz Begum, two sons, Moyeen Iqbal and Ikram Iqbal, and a daughter, Naurin Iqbal, were also convicted.[13] HBM Iqbal was sent to jail in February 2010.[12]

The High Court acquitted Iqbal in 2011 but upheld the convictions of his family members. The ACC filed a petition against the acquittal but they dropped their petition in 2015.[14] The family members surrendered at the court in March 2017 and secured bail within a week.[14][15]

In April 2010, Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK), the public agency for urban development in Dhaka, sent a demolition notice to Momtaz Begum, the wife of Iqbal, for illegally building, Premier Square, a skyscraper in Gulshan area.[16] She had failed to produce documents supporting building's approval despite repeated notices.[16]

In February 2021, Iqbal sent more than 30 legal notices to bdnews24.com to remove past articles on criminal cases against him.[17] Online articles regarding Iqbal's cases published by The Daily Star now shows the error "You are not authorized to access this page".[3][8][11][16]

As of 2010, Iqbal was a vice-president of the Awami League's Dhaka city unit.[16] He is the founder chairman of Premier Group of Companies Ltd, Premier Bank Limited, Premier Foundation and Premier Bank Foundation.[18][2][19]

Personal life

Iqbal was married to Momtaz Begum (d. 2022).[20][21] She had served as the vice-chairman of Sheikh Hasina University of Science and Technology Board of Trustees and as the chairperson of the Royal University of Dhaka Board of Trustees.[22]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Four injured in reckless driving by ex-Awami League MP HBM Iqbal's underage nephew at Gulshan". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Biography - Dr HBM Iqbal". 2020-10-06. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  3. ^ a b c "Photos From The Incident". The Daily Star. 2010-08-27. Archived from the original on 2019-03-26. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
  4. ^ "Dulal remanded in 2001 Malibagh shooting". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
  5. ^ a b "AL leaders relieved from 2001 murder case". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
  6. ^ "Charges pressed against Iqbal, 23 others". The Daily Star. 2003-01-01. Archived from the original on 2019-03-26. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  7. ^ "Iqbal, Shaon, 12 others acquitted of Malibagh murder charges". banglanews24.com. 2010-08-25. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
  8. ^ a b "Property of HBM Iqbal, family to be attached". The Daily Star. 28 November 2007. Archived from the original on 29 November 2016. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  9. ^ "HBM Iqbal jailed for 13 years". bdnews24.com. 11 March 2008. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  10. ^ "HBM Iqbal handed 13yrs behind bars". The Daily Star. 12 March 2008. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  11. ^ a b "AL's crime dons show up at HC". The Daily Star. 19 January 2009. Archived from the original on 1 November 2016. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  12. ^ a b "Banker, ex-AL MP Iqbal sent to jail in wealth case". bdnews24.com. 28 February 2010. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  13. ^ a b "Ex-MP Iqbal\'s wife, two sons, daughter land in jail". The Financial Express. Dhaka. 9 March 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
  14. ^ a b "Ex-MP Iqbal's wife, 3 children get bail". The Independent. Dhaka. Archived from the original on 2020-02-06. Retrieved 2020-08-20.
  15. ^ "Former AL lawmaker Iqbal's wife, two sons and daughter land in jail". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  16. ^ a b c d Ali, Tawfique (25 August 2010). "Rising high the audacity". The Daily Star. Archived from the original on 3 December 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  17. ^ "Former ruling party MP accused of orchestrating 'attempts to muzzle journalism'". Dhaka Tribune. 2021-02-17. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  18. ^ "Premier Bank sues nine officials for fund fraud". The Daily Star. 21 January 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  19. ^ "5-star Marriott chain opens in Dhaka". The Daily Star. 19 December 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  20. ^ "HBM Iqbal's wife Momtaz Begum dies". businesspostbd.com. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  21. ^ "Premier Bank Chairman Dr HBM Iqbal's wife passes away". daily-sun. 2022-06-28. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  22. ^ "Premier Bank chairman's wife passes away". The Business Standard. 2022-06-28. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
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