Obaidul Karim, chairman of Orion Group, has built a business empire through bribery and trade during all governments for at least 30 years. He strategically leased Kohinoor Chemical Company Limited, the state-owned weak company, and started expanding the business in 1993.
It is known that he influenced influential ministers and MPs of the government at that time and took over the company without tender and competition. He then secretly and openly bribed influential ministers during each government to extract immoral benefits. He expanded the business by providing various financial benefits to the ministers and MPs and influential bureaucrats of the then Awami League government from 1996 to 2000. After that, he did not stop the bribery business.
He gave luxury cars like BMW as bribes to several ministers-MPs of the four-party coalition government in addition to cash from 2001 to 2005. He tried to lure senior army officers during the military-backed One-Eleven caretaker government in 2007 and 2008, but to no avail.
More than 14 cases were registered against him, including embezzlement, acquisition of wealth through illegal means, cheating, and forgery. He was sentenced to 48 years imprisonment in 3 cases. However, he made many ministers and MPs of the Awami League-led government as business partners with nominal shares from 2009 to July this year. Thanks to them, he survived for 15 years due to various corruption-irregularities in contracting works, including various power plants. Among the 14 cases filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) against Obaidul Karim, this information of bribery-trading was found in the judgment of some cases during '1/11' (one-eleven).
A luxury car BMW was lying abandoned on the Dhanmondi street of the capital for almost a day during the state of emergency in the country in 2007. The then anti-corruption task force recovered the car and started searching for the owner. It was found later that the owner of the car is the former whip of BNP Ashraf Hossain. Later, the car was given to former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia's political secretary, Harish Chowdhury. Obaidul Karim, chairman of Orion Group, gave the car as a bribe during the BNP-Jamaat government. ACC filed a case against five people, including Ashraf Hossain, Obaidul Karim, and Harris Chowdhury at that time. After the investigation, a charge sheet was also filed against them. The trial court framed charges against the accused. Obaidul Karim tactfully made some influential ministers and MPs of the grand coalition government led by the Awami League as business partners with nominal shares in 2012 when the charges were formed. As a result, Obaidul Karim appealed to the High Court against the framing of charges on the advice of influential quarters of that government. The High Court acquitted him of the case on September 25 of the same year. However, it was ordered that the case against the other four accused will continue. ACC also appealed to the Supreme Court against this judgment of the High Court. Ashraf Hossain died in July 2000, and Haris Chowdhury died in September 2021 during the pendency of the appeal.
According to ACC sources, the ACC appeal is now inactive due to various reasons.
Meanwhile, a verdict given by the bench of Justice Md. Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Khizir Hayat on May 5, 2023, stated that Obaidul Karim had been proven to have paid bribes of at least Tk 25 crore to the Minister of State for Power and his wife in the BNP-Jamaat government in 2005 and 2006. It is mentioned in that verdict of 273 pages that Orion's Digital Power Associates Ltd. paid bribes of at least Tk 25 crore to then State Minister for Power Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku and his wife Rumana Mahmud at various times in 2005 and 2006 to unethically take up several power projects. Obaidul Karim paid Tk 50 lakh to Iqbal Mahmud Tuku through check number 8191354 from his Southeast Bank account number 11100012814. Apart from this, on June 6, 2006, at least Tk 1 crore 24 lakh 23 thousand 789 was paid from the account numbers 0233022613 and 051309592001 of the State Bank of India and the IFIC Bank of Bangladesh in India through One Entertainment, a bribe distribution company of Obaidul Karim.
A BMW car was given to Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku out of this money with Tk 47 lakh 76 thousand 906; a plot of 3 katha was bought in Bashundhara residential area for 74 lakh 8 thousand 300 taka. However, Obaidul Karim claimed that the money was given to his brother, who was staying in India at that time, for house rent.
Meanwhile, Rumana Mahmud, wife of Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, was given Tk 1 crore through payment order number 0392959 of Oriental Bank Karwan Bazar branch from One Entertainment on December 6, 2005.
Although Obaidul Karim's son-in-law Mehdi Hasan's name as the receiver is there in this pay order, Rumana Mahmud was written there after cutting off his name, and Rumana Mahmud withdrew the money as a particular receiver. Earlier on March 28 of the same year, Rumana Mahmud was given another Tk 1 crore through a pay order. In this way, it is mentioned in the description of the verdict that Obaidul Karim paid bribes of at least Tk 25 crores on different occasions. AFM Shariful Islam, manager of the main branch of Southeast Bank, manager of the Gulshan branch of IFIC Bank, and related witnesses testified in favor of the complaint during the trial. As a result, the allegation is proved beyond doubt.
The entire verdict was written by Justice Nazrul Islam Talukder. Justice Khizir Hayat supported the verdict.
Obaidul Karim tried to turn around in 2009 with more than 14 cases, including money embezzlement, illegal acquisition of wealth, fraud, and forgery, and 48 years imprisonment in 3 cases. When the grand coalition government was formed under the leadership of the Awami League to avoid the responsibility of all misdeeds, he partnered powerful leaders, including influential ministers and MPs of that government, in some of his institutions.
Mirza Azam, former Minister of State for Textiles and Jute, has been given the post of director of Orion's subsidiary, Digital Power & Associates Limited. The post of director of Dutch-Bangla Power Associate Limited was given to Awami League's influential leader and former MP Alauddin Ahmed Chowdhury Nasim. Shamim Osman, the influential leader of the Awami League and former MP of Narayanganj, was given the directorship of Orion Power Sonargaon Limited. He made many such ministers and MPs partners in his various institutions and remained untouchable in the last 16 years.
The interim government has taken a tough stance against corruption by his family members and Orion Group executives since taking office. Their bank accounts have already been seized.
The current interim government has taken a tough stance against the corruption of Obaidul Karim, his family members, and executives of Orion Group after assuming power. Their bank accounts have already been seized. Bangladesh Bank, NBR, and various law enforcement agencies are conducting the investigation. However, Obaidul Karim and the executives of Orion Group are trying hard to get rid of this.
