May.6, 2010, 6:25 pm BdST

Dhaka, May 6 (bdnews24.com) —The Anticorruption Commission has filed a criminal case against senior BNP leader Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury on charges of money laundering.

Toufiqul Islam, an ACC assistant director, filed the case with the Dhanmondi Police Station on Thursday afternoon.

Dhanmondi police chief Shah Alam confirmed bdnews24.com about a case against the opposition MP.

He said that according to the case details Chowdhury had sent $250,000 and HK$100,000 from Hong Kong to the UK on Sep 5, 2005.

"But he had concealed that information from the Commission."

Alam said that the case details also mentioned that the BNP policymaker had purchased shares of a foreign pharmaceutical company--Global Beximco Pharma UK--with that money.

On June 13, 2007, the graft watchdog filed another case against the BNP standing committee member with Ramna police for concealing wealth information and amassing wealth from unknown sources.

The case details said Chowdhury had illegally acquired assets worth Tk 9.46 crore and that he had concealed information about assets worth Tk 11.74 crore.

The case is currently stayed following a High Court order.

The ACC in its list of country's 50 corrupt politicians, businessmen, bureaucrats, drawn up during the tenure of the previous caretaker government, asked them to submit their wealth information, including that of their wives and children.

Chowdhury's name was also there.

He was arrested by the joint forces on Feb 3.