Another case was lodged against Abul Hasnat Abdullah, former Awami League (AL) chief whip, in connection with concealing information about his actual wealth in the statement submitted to the Anticorruption Commission.

Abdullah, Barisal district AL secretary and also cousin of AL chief Sheikh Hasina, is undergoing trial in absentia in two other cases filed in connection with graft.

Abdullah's family and other sources said Rahela Khatun, deputy director (DD) of the ACC, on Friday lodged the case with Dhanmondi Police Station in Dhaka.

According to the complainant, Abdullah in his statement only mentioned the house he has at Dhanmondi worth Tk 52.55 lakh. The complainant said the ACC found that Abdullah had concealed movable and immovable properties worth crores of taka and that the anti-graft body failed to find any legal source of income through which he had obtained the wealth.

He had submitted his wealth statement to the ACC through his wife.

Trial of the other two cases filed against Abdullah started at Barisal Divisional Special Tribunal on September 5 and the charge framing date was fixed for September 11.

Court sources said the two other cases were lodged against him after law enforcers on October 22, 2002 raided his Barisal home and seized 355 blank freedomfighter certificates, Tk 6.13 lakh in cash and some gold ornaments.

Sub-inspector Borhan Reza lodged both the cases with Barisal Police Station and Inspector Zillur Rahman, the then officer-in-charge of the police station and investigation officer (IO) of the cases, submitted the charge sheet against Abdullah on April 13, 2006.

Meantime, Abdullah obtained an ad interim bail from High Court until the submission of the charge sheets. He was declared absconding after he failed to surrender before a court.

Abdullah allegedly went to India two days before the state of emergency was proclaimed on January 11, 2007. He is allegedly living there with his daughter and daughter-in-law.