Bangladesh’s Waqf Administration has suspended orders appointing the chief mutawalli and mutawalli of Hamdard Laboratories (Waqf) Bangladesh and ordered the organisation to produce decades of financial records and a full inventory of its assets.
The directives follow an investigation by a special committee formed by the Ministry of Religious Affairs into alleged legal and administrative irregularities at the herbal medicine manufacturer.
The Waqf Administration sent separate letters to Hamdard’s managing director on August 24, implementing recommendations contained in a July 21 memorandum from the ministry’s investigation committee, according to documents reviewed by Daily Waadaa.
The orders require Hamdard to submit audit reports covering every financial year since its establishment.
The organisation has also been given 15 days to provide a comprehensive list of its registered and unregistered movable and immovable properties.
The Waqf Administration has also moved to review amendments to Hamdard’s original “Administration and Management Rules, 1986”.
According to the directives, the original rules did not contain positions titled “Chief Mutawalli” and “Mutawalli”. The positions were introduced through subsequent amendments.
The administration has therefore suspended orders issued on January 6, 2013 relating to appointments to the two positions until the relevant rules are amended or the legal questions surrounding them are resolved.
Hamdard’s own website currently identifies Dr Hakim Md Yousuf Harun Bhuiyan as its managing director and chief mutawalli.
A government gazette published in March 2019 also incorporated the chief mutawalli position into Hamdard’s rules. It states that the managing director and chief mutawalli would serve as the chief executive of the Hamdard Waqf Estate and lays out a succession mechanism for the position.
The latest directives put those subsequent changes under review.
The investigation committee recommended retaining the Board of Trustees under Rule 5 of the 1986 rules and taking steps to repeal amendments introduced in 2012 and 2019 that the committee found were inconsistent with the original governance structure.
It also recommended initiating steps to revoke disputed gazette notifications concerning succession at Hamdard.
The Waqf Administration has asked Hamdard to submit complete audit reports for every accounting year since its establishment.
Where audits have already been completed, copies must be provided within 15 working days, according to the directive.
For any years where accounts remain unaudited, Hamdard has been instructed to commission audits by a recognised chartered accountancy firm and submit the reports to the Waqf Administration.
The Waqfs Ordinance, 1962 gives the Waqf Administrator powers to seek accounts, returns and other information from mutawallis and issue directions for the administration of waqf properties.
Hamdard has separately been ordered to prepare an inventory of all movable and immovable properties controlled by the Waqf estate.
The list must include both registered properties and assets that have not previously been listed with the authorities, according to the directive.
The records are to be submitted within 15 days.
Hamdard operates as a registered pharmaceutical establishment in Bangladesh, according to records of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments. Its registered corporate operation is based at Rupayan Trade Center on Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue in Dhaka.
The Office of the Waqf Administrator is headed by Safiz Uddin Ahmed, a secretary-ranked government official, according to the Religious Affairs Ministry.
Hamdard has not issued a public response to the investigation findings or the directives reviewed by Daily Waadaa.
Its website continued to identify Yousuf Harun as managing director and chief mutawalli as of this week.
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